


Reus Una

by purplepen76



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Animagus Harry Potter, BAMF Ginny Weasley, Canon Divergent, Dumbledore Bashing, Dumbledore's Army, F/M, Hogwarts Sixth Year, Junior Order of the Phoenix, M/M, Magically Powerful Harry, Manipulative Dumbledore, Originally Posted on FanFiction.Net, Post-Order of the Phoenix, Ron Weasley is a Good Friend
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-10-04
Updated: 2018-01-16
Packaged: 2018-04-24 19:38:29
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Underage
Chapters: 27
Words: 114,945
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4932703
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/purplepen76/pseuds/purplepen76
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Harry Potter might be the savior of the Wizarding world and the only person able to end the war, but could Draco Malfoy changing sides swing the balance enough to change the outcome? What if Draco had taken the right path and Harry and his friends had taken the time to open up to each other and learn to trust each other? Post OotP Canon Divergent</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is a repost from my old fanfiction.net account. I have yet to finish this story, but I do have plenty of chapters to get this started in order for me to catch up and (hopefully) finish this story up!

The sun shown down on the grounds of Hogwarts bathing it in a warmth that didn't seem to reach it's occupants. The war was raging on with no end in sight. There didn't seem to be much reason for good cheer which left sixteen year old Harry Potter sitting alone by the lake pondering his life and what was expected of him in the coming months.

It was only a week into his sixth year at Hogwarts and already Harry felt as if it was dragging. Hermione and Ron were still treating him like he was about to break. While he was still obviously upset about Sirius' death, as far as he was concerned it was his fault that he had lost his Godfather, he desperately needed them to treat him normally and they just didn't seem to understand. More troubling was the fact that Ginny seemed to dance between treating him like a good friend one moment and then trying desperately to convince him to give their relationship a go in the next moment. As far as Harry was concerned there never had been any relationship between them; everything was in the girl's overly active imagination.

Sighing, Harry laid back to drink in the sun. Closing his eyes in an attempt to let the pain, anger, and stress burn away from the heat of the sun's rays. As he lay there he concentrated on heightening his other senses. Since the battle at the ministry Harry had come to the realization that he could no longer wait around to be saved. He spent the summer training himself in any way he could that didn't involve magic. It was because of this that he noticed the soft steps that signaled someone else's approach.

Draco Malfoy was stunned when Harry moved from his relaxed state, jumping up with his wand drawn and sliding easily into a battle stance, eyeing him warily. It seemed that he realized whom he was holding is wand to and faltered for a moment before thinking better of it and regaining his composure. Draco was sure that he had been quite, but the boy still seemed to have heard him. Because of whom his father was, Draco knew all about what had happened to Harry and his friends at the end of the last school year and he was sure that he was staring the consequences right in the face. Harry looked more than prepared to fight than ever and Draco was not about to test him.

"What do you want Malfoy?" Harry spoke through gritted teeth and Draco had to admit that he was actually rather afraid of the young man who stood before him.

"To apologize." It was clear on Draco's face that having to admit this brought him great pain, most likely to his ego, but he seemed determined. Harry wasn't sure if it was the show of self deprecation, or the hint of maturity in the Slytherin's eyes, that made him lower his wand, but he did. His stance became more relaxed though his guard was still up and sat back down in the grass again. Draco eyed him wirily, waiting for him so say something. When Harry motioned for him to sit as well, he took it as a good sign and took a seat. Harry waited until he was comfortable until speaking again.

"What for?" Harry finally asked when he heard more than saw the boy take his seat. His eyes were closed again and he was doing his best to stay calm. He had done a lot of thinking about many things over the summer, including his place in the war and in the Order. If Draco had something important to say to him, enough so that he should feel the need to seek him out and apologize, it would be wise to hear him out first. Information was exactly what he needed, losing his cool could wait until later.

"What not for?" The question left Draco's mouth before he even realized that he'd meant it. Harry let it hang between them until the tension nearly became palpable. When it was painfully obvious that Draco was not going to elaborate Harry opened his eyes and turned to face the boy.

"Why now?" Harry watched him for a moment. "And if you say why not now I will not hesitate to leave you here." Draco surveyed him as if to see if he was being serious, it seemed that he had decided he was because his next answer was more forthcoming.

"I've been given to the Dark Lord by my horrible Father in an attempt to rectify whatever wrong doings he seems to think my family has committed. I can't complete the task awarded me." Here Draco paused and Harry knew it was not because of his admission, but rather because he was stealing himself for whatever else he was about to say. "I can't keep living the way I am. I know that I must make an official stand on which side I align myself with in this war. I know the difference between right and wrong. I know that the way I have acted these past five years have been inexcusable." It was then that Draco looked up from his perfectly polished shoes to stare directly into Harry's eyes, "But I'm afraid. I need to make things right before it's too late. I know to start making things right I'd have to tell you that I am so sorry for being a complete prat."

Harry looked into the eyes of someone he had seen only as an enemy for so long, searching for any ill intent. When he saw none he let out the breath that he'd been holding. Warily nodding more to himself than to Draco, Harry seemed to come to some sort of conclusion before speaking.

"I suppose you will be looking for protection for you mother and father and the clearing of their names?" Harry seemed to sneer with his words, but held the look off his face, instead holding him in a passive gaze that was even more terrifying then the sneer could have been.

"Not for my Father, I wish I could protect my Mother, but I know her well enough to know that she will stand by his side for fear of her own life and I suppose mine, but if I publicly align myself as I plan to then I don't think Father will be the worst of my problems."

"You know by publicly aligning yourself with me, with the light, it will affect everything right down to your school life." Harry stated rather than questioned knowing the answer. If Draco had given enough thought to ask for his forgiveness then he had thought of all other possibilities and difficulties that he could possibly face. He chose to leave the issue of his family alone for the time being. It was none of his business what went on between the young heir and his family, though it was comforting to hear the distain in his voice at the mention of his father.

"Of course." Draco answered knowing that it hadn't been a question, but feeling the need to make Harry know that he had considered this. He had considered it all. He was quite surprised at how calmly Harry seemed to be acting, noticing the flecks of magic come and go in his bright green eyes. It all seemed much too easy.

"What were you tasked to do?" Harry asked suddenly, pulling Draco from his thoughts back into the present.

"I'm sorry?" He asked confused, not sure what Harry meant, finding the jump from one topic to the next unsettling, especially with how calm the infamously shortly fused Gryffindor was being.

"What did Voldemort task you?" Harry turned in time to see Draco flinch. Rolling his eyes he added, "Fear of the name will only cause fear of the thing itself."

Pushing Harry's admonishing tone aside, he thought carefully about the question. If Potter was able to remain calm now, he was certain that his next bit of information would ruin what odd peace had befallen them.

"I was ordered to kill-" Pausing to regain his shaking voice, Draco was met with the very sharp gaze of his peer, urging him to finish his sentence. "I was ordered to kill Professor Dumbledore."

The silence between them so was near palpable this time that Draco was sure he would chock on it. By the time he realized that it was Harry's stray magic, electrifying the air due to his anger, Draco was sure that he would suffocate.

Harry's mind was whirling. He knew that Voldemort feared Dumbledore so it made sense that he would have wanted him dead, but why choose a boy when he himself had never been able to complete the task? Why send a child on such a dangerous task that they could not complete, only to have them return and receive a most harsh punishment. To teach him a lesson. Harry realized, shaking his head at Voldemort, disgusted at his latest crime against wizarding kind, specifically to children who should not be tortured for things that were never in their power. But what did Draco telling him mean? He was sure that Voldemort had a back up plan set up. He was sure that there was no way that anyone actually expected Draco to succeed so this didn't mean that Professor Dumbledore was in the clear, but what did this mean of Malfoy or his loyalties. Slowly coming to himself, Harry realized that his magic had been let lose, quickly retracting it in time to hear the sharp intake of breath on Malfoy's part.

"Oh, sorry." Harry said watching the boy carefully, still seeming to be thinking something over. His tone was passive, but there was a small line of concern wrinkling his brow.

"Was that all your magic?" Draco gasped again, glad that Potter had seemed to come back to his own head and was no longer silently killing him.

"No, just what's readily available to me." Harry answered passively, missing the shocked look on Draco's face. The blond watched the boy carefully, seeming to think over his next words with great caution before proceeding.

"Why have I never seen your magic so powerful before, not in any of our classes, not even in our fourth year when you were in the tournament-" Draco trailed of as if to say _not even when you went into the Department of Mysteries and got your Godfather killed._ But Harry knew that last bit was just in his mind, that Malfoy had no way of knowing what had happened, what he'd lost and his guilt over the matter. Pushing hurtful memories aside, he faced the question at hand for what is was.

"I guess my magic was sort of locked up. After the end of last year, I don't know, I think that my body just realized that I really needed this extra energy and magic that I was capable of and just opened up to let me access it. I haven't really had much chance to train or control it, so I'm sorry if I hurt you."

The words of kindness came as a shock to Draco and he looked at the boy again clearly amazed. He looked at him closely and realized that for the first time since they began to talk the fake calm was broken and Harry was actually giving him a small smile.

"Why are you being so kind to me?" The question fell from his lips before he could catch it, coloring his cheeks when he realized he had set it out loud.

"You're not used to forgiveness and kindness are you?" Even though it was posed as a question, Draco knew he meant it as a statement. "Well you might as well try and get used to it. I might be able to forgive you relatively easily, but the rest of the Order will question your every move until they truly let you in. Are you going to be able to forgive yourself in order for them to forgive you?"

It was a pregnant question and Draco realized that this boy whom he had been taught to despise all of their school lives seemed to know him better than he knew himself. Would he be able to forgive himself? Would he actually accept the forgiveness that he would have to earn from the Light? A silence fell between them again and this time Draco was left feeling completely lost. Harry Potter had just pulled the metaphorical rug out from underneath him and left him lying there without any way to stand again. Harry seemed to know that Draco was in a state of intense thought because he left him alone and took time to stare out at the lake and think about where he would have to go from there. He really did feel like it would be easy to forgive the boy, of anyone, he understood the most what it felt like to have to live up to your parents and their actions and needing to protect them and yourself while also following the path that society built for you. While they were from two completely different backgrounds, Harry felt a connection to the boy that he had never been able to feel with his friends and it was a welcome and unsettling feeling. Deciding that he had done enough deep thought for a lifetime, Harry suddenly stood, startling Draco from his own musings.

"We might as well go in and talk to Dumbledore about all of this." Harry extended his hand and when Draco took it, he pulled the boy up with ease as if he hardly weighed a thing. "Are you sure you want to publicly switch sides? Your life will never be the same."

"I'm sure." Draco nodded needing to prove that he was strong, that he could do this, even if he didn't feel that confidant.

"Good." Harry let go of the other boy's hand. Draco hadn't noticed that he had been holding it, but instantly missed the comfort it brought. There was some sort of calm power radiating off the other boy and while he hadn't noticed it until their hands touched, now he could not ignore it. The ominous power that had just minutes ago nearly suffocated him seemed to now envelope him in protection. "You can feel the magic now, can't you?" Harry laughed quietly, seeing the confused look on Draco's face. "Good, I want to test if I can control who notices it. We can kill two birds with one stone by visiting the Headmaster."

Ignoring the strange muggle phrase, Draco began to wonder why Harry would want to hide his new power, and especially why he would hide it from Dumbledore. Pushing his questions aside, he jogged to catch up with the boy, more than a little afraid with the commitment that he was making, but confident in the thought that he was at least making the right decision.

 


	2. Chapter 2

It was only the beginning of October and already Harry was more than a little fed up with his two best friends. They were currently tailing him as he made his way to the library in an attempt to find a quiet place to work on his homework without disappearing entirely. He never could understand why he explained to them how the Map worked, if he ever wanted time alone he would have to take it and the cloak with him, making sure to place multiple anti-tracking jinxes on himself and anti-summoning jinxes on both the map and the cloak. He would have considered going through such lengths today, but he couldn't seem to shake them for even a minute.

"Look Harry we're just worried about you." Hermione tried to plead with him for what seemed like the hundredth time since school started.

"I understand that, but I just need some time alone." Harry knew that Hermione meant well, but it didn't mean that she was any less annoying.

"You're always alone, Mate." Ron complained, not sure what Harry's problem was but he was fed up with his attitude. "What you don't trust us anymore?"

"No," Harry started, but stopped himself. He had told them already that they wouldn't understand, that they couldn't possibly get what he was going through and every time it never ended well.

"We would understand better if you would just let us know what you were thinking." Hermione pestered, not willing to give up on him.

"I don't want to talk about it." Harry nearly yelled. Other students in the hall stopped to stare at the trio, but the matching glares they received from the three warded off anymore unwanted attention.

"Oh I'm sure he'd much rather talk Malfoy than us." Ron sneered, no longer willing to put up with Harry and his excuses.

"Ronald, that's not what this is about." Hermione pleaded trying to keep both boys from becoming more angry and the inevitable fight to ensue. But to both of their surprise, Harry seemed to calm instantly at Ron's words, his eyes going cold as his face seemingly relaxed. The tension between the two grew tremendously and Hermione's eyes flitted between the two waiting for them to draw their wands. Her hand twitched on her own, preparing to force them apart if necessary. A sudden shout from around the corner pulled the three from their argument and they ran to the noise.

Harry arrived at the scene first, having been closest to the hallway. He stopped on the spot, taking in the situation before jumping to action. Draco Malfoy was dangling from his ankle against the stone wall. Blaise Zabini was standing below him, attempting to fight off the attacker and also get Draco to safety. Theodore Nott was standing before them with his wand drawn, a few younger Slytherins surrounding him, jeering at the blond. Before anyone knew what had happened Harry was standing bellow Draco, easily ending the spell that Nott had casted, catching the falling boy with one arm, and raising his wand with the other. He let Draco down immediately to avoid any embarrassment and took a full dueling stance. Professors Snape, McGonnagal, and Dumbledore arrived on the scene just in time to see Draco move behind Harry and Blaise take up a dueling stance beside Harry.

"What's going on here?" Professor McGonnagal demanded and the younger Slytherins tried to run.

"Where do you think you're going?" Professor Snape bellowed and his students stopped in their tracks, returning to face their Head of House with pure dread on their faces. "And you, Potter, how is that you're always in the middle of a fight?"

"He was defending Malfoy." Hermione spoke up jumping to her friend's defense, her eyes narrowing when Snape's mean gaze fell on her.

"I highly doubt-" The man began to drawl, but Draco spoke up this time.

"He was defending me." Draco stepped out from behind the boy, still shaking from being hung upside down.

"I see." Snape eyed the odd group the three boys made and seemed to accept that Draco was telling the truth. "You five, my office." His hawk eyes fell on the Slytherins who had caused the trouble.

The hallway cleared quickly after, the students who had been attacking Draco and the Professors moved to Snape's office to further discuss punishment. Hermione and Ron walked away too, wearily looking back at Harry, deciding to finish their _conversation_ later. Harry waited for all possible onlookers to leave before turning to Draco, concern clearly written on his face. He wanted to say "I told you so," but thought better of it, instead making sure that the boy hadn't been physically hurt.

"What happened?" Harry asked softly, a deep contrast to the hard look that had just left his face.

"Nothing, Nott decided to show off a bit of fancy wand work." Blaise interjected, not sure why Harry was sticking around. He was grateful that Potter had helped, but not sure how to react to his open kindness toward Draco.

"I wasn't asking you." Harry shot back, glaring at Blaise before looking back to Draco again his expression changed the moment his eyes were on the blond again. Blaise thought to make a comment about it, but thought better of it. "Are you okay?"

"I've been better." Draco shrugged, his indifferent mask returning. Since he had allied himself with Harry the two had built a tentative friendship, though in public they acted civilly and left it at that.

"Drop the act, Draco." Harry almost never used the boy's first name, but when he did he was always deadly serious.

"This wasn't the worst." Draco sagged against the wall, not surprised when he felt Harry stand closer to him and he leaned closer to him without actually touching, drinking in the constant comfort that was Harry's magic.

"You know that the offer still stands, we could move you in today." Harry tried gently, knowing that Draco wouldn't take his offer well.

"I am _not_ giving in and moving out of the Slytherin dorms." Draco gritted his teeth, leveling Harry with a glare.

"Zabini could move in with you, if he wanted." Harry tried again. He didn't want to have this conversation with someone else there, especially since his and Draco's friendship was still so frail and his own two friends had just abandoned him, but Draco seemed to trust Zabini, so he continued to speak as if the other boy was not there.

"Move where?" Blaise had known that Draco had gone to Potter for help, the whole school knew that much, but he hadn't yet witnessed how the two acted in private. It struck him as odd how easily they seemed to talk as if they were merely acquaintances and had not been rivals for the past five years.

"There are rooms near the Gryffindor tower, they were originally for the head of House, but have since been abandoned since Professor McGonnagal decided to reside elsewhere in the castle. They're empty and Professor Dumbledore has offered them to Draco should he need them." Harry looked to the darker boy finally fully acknowledging him. "I know that moving out is not ideal, but it would be safe." Harry looked back to Draco who had a deep frown on his face.

"Blaise doesn't have to join me." It was the closest that Harry was going to get to him openly agreeing and he knew that. Sighing in relief, Harry nodded, looking to the blond's friend again.

"Well it's up to you." His tone was casual, but the look in his eyes said it all, " _Don't you dare leave him alone._ "

Alright." Blaise agreed slowly looking between the two again, not sure what to make of them. They were acting _so odd_ and moving in with Draco would provide him with the best opportunity to figure out just what was happening between the two. Beyond that, however, was the fact that Draco was his friend and he really did care about him, he wouldn't have left the boy alone even if Harry didn't seem so insistent. "We'll move in tonight."

"Good." Harry nodded, stepping back from Draco who looked much more relaxed then he had minutes before. "Go to Snape and let him know, I will come by tonight to make sure you are both settled in, alright?" Before Blaise could comment that he wasn't their keeper, Harry left around the corner and was out of sight.

"What's with the two of you?" Blaise rounded on his best mate sounding harsher than he had meant to. He hated when Draco kept things from him.

"Not now, we've spent too much time here and walls have ears." Draco glared into the empty hall before starting in the direction of their Head of House's office.

* * *

 

"Harry where have you been?" Just as the boy expected Hermione and Ron sat waiting for him in the common room. The whole room was empty, most likely because the two had cleared it which meant that the rest of the students were waiting near the stairs listening.

"I was talking to Malfoy, making sure he wasn't hurt, is that a problem?" Harry asked in a tone that clearly stated that he didn't believe it was an issue and it should be dropped.

"Of course it is, he's Malfoy!" Ron cried and while Hermione threw him a look it didn't stop her from looking back to Harry for an answer.

"We need to have another DA meeting, and I know that most of the house is listening at the stairs, so I I'm sure we will only need to inform the other houses. We will meet tomorrow, in the usual place at 10 o'clock. I will answer all your questions then." Harry was looking up at the stairs while talking, smirking when he saw the edges of robes disappear as the Gryffindors hiding there did there best to leave before being caught.

"Harry we just want you to tell us what's going on." Hermione tried to plead again, hoping that Ron would not suddenly jump in as he always did and ruin things.

"I will, tomorrow." Harry replied vaguely, casting a _tempus_ before seeming to make up his mind. "I'm going to head down to dinner early, I have something to take care of after so don't wait up for me. Professor Dumbledore will no doubt want to speak to me after this afternoon."

"Harry, we are your _friends_ you can't keep shutting us out like this." Hermione tried again, taking hold of his arm to keep him from turning away. Harry sighed. looking into her sad eyes with his own tired ones. She was right, she almost always was.

"I know, and I owe you guys an explanation. This is just hard for me to talk about and rather than having to explain myself a million times over and have people skewing the story I'd rather tell everyone at once. It's purely selfish of me, I know." The self-defamation had the desired effect and Hermione's eyes instantly softened.

"Alright then, but if we have more _private_ questions-" She began, but Harry swiftly cut her off because she could go into a full lecture.

"I will answer them all, after the meeting." Harry nodded, glad that he had at least given himself a reprieve from their nagging. While he did love his friends dearly they really knew how to get on his nerves. Hermione was satisfied with his answer and let go of his arm, allowing him to leave the common room without them.

"Why'd you just let him go, 'Mione." Ron asked sulking from the couch.

"Because, it took a lot for Harry to admit that this is hard on him, he finally showed us that he is struggling, I just wanted to see that fake mask of indifference leave his face."

"Well when you put it that way you make him sound like _Malfoy_." Ron made a gagging noise and Hermione rolled her eyes at his antics.

" _They really are very alike_." Hermione realized, not sure how to take the information, she put her thoughts aside to deal with her brooding boyfriend.

* * *

 

"This is very troubling." Dumbledore spoke, a twinkle ever present in his eye as he looked between his two most prized Order members. Harry looked passively back while Snape sat in the chair next to him, a deep glower on his face.

"Troubling. Is that all you have to say, Albus?" Snape demanded, ignoring the boy, he couldn't understand why he was even there, sure he had personally taken Draco to see the Headmaster not a month before, but it seemed hardly necessary for him to be there now.

"Well I'm sure that Harry can absolve the situation." The headmaster replied cheerily, looking to the boy for an answer.

"Draco and Blaise Zabini have agreed to move into the old Gryffindor quarters, they should be doing so now." Harry continued to keep the blank look on his face. Harry would not give away his thoughts to either men, not sure if he could truly trust them especially after the past two years with Dumbledore holding more and more back from him. He felt a push at his mental wall and looked lazily toward Snape daring him to push harder. Snape looked annoyed as he tried to push further, surprised when he felt resistance. Harry was easily keeping his mind closed and no matter how hard Snape tried he could not use legilimency to gain access to the boys thoughts. "I've learned a few new tricks, _Sir_ , I wouldn't rely on breaking into my mind for information." The smirk on his face was worthy of a Slytherin and Snape's gaze narrowed.

"You've taught yourself occlumency!" Dumbledore clapped, ignoring Snape's mounting anger.

"Yes, but how?" Snape tried to intimidate Harry with his glare, but Harry just stared back, not taking the bait.

"Now children." The conversation was brought back to the topic at hand. "I'm sure you will help to properly integrate Mr. Malfoy and Mr. Zabini into their new home." It was a statement and Harry nodded, he would have anyways, but he knew that it was best for Dumbledore to feel like he was in charge, the less he knew the better. "Good. You run off now, Harry, Severus an I have some things to discuss."

Harry stood, thanking the Headmaster for his time and nodded curtly to Snape before taking his leave. He made sure to shoot Snape a smirk in response to his glare out of Dumbledore's sight. When he left the room, he made his way out of the tower immediately, knowing that he would not be able to stick around to eavesdrop as Dumbledore would most likely know he was still there and force him to leave.

"There is something up with that boy." Severus spoke slowly when he was sure that Harry had left.

"Oh, I'm not sure I know what you mean." Dumbledore smiled, playing dumb to push Severus' buttons.

"You know what I mean." Snape rolled his eyes, not willing to repeat himself. He was not going to play this game with his employer.

"He seems to be taking some leadership, it will be good for the boy." Dumbledore answered, not addressing Severus' first statement.

"Merlin that is just what we need, Potter getting it in his head that he's a leader." Severus' groaned, rubbing his face with his hand.

"Severus, my boy, you don't give him enough credit, he's not just James' son." The familiar twinkle was still in the man's eyes, but there was something in the way he looked at Snape that made it clear to the man that Dumbledore was far from joking.

"I know, he's more Lily's son, that's what I find troubling." The two sat in silence, Snape mulling over his thoughts and Dumbledore studying his spy carefully, the twinkle never leaving his eyes.

* * *

The old Gryffindor Head of House quarters had been cleaned out by the house elves and when Draco and Blaise entered their new dorm there was a fire already lit for them. Because it used to be for a Professor, and their family if they had one, there was a small kitchenette, library, lab, and store room all attached to the common room. Two bedrooms, each with there own bathrooms, were on the second floor, the staircase situated on the far right.

"All we need is to change the colors and this would be perfect." Blaise mused, both boys jumped when a voice came from the portrait.

"I'm not sure how Godric would feel about that, but it would be worth it to see his reaction." Harry smirked, leaning on the door frame.

"I don't see the issue with changing the colors, Salazar and I were good friends, I would be honored to share my home with his students." The portrait guarding the entrance, called, moving to his frame above the fireplace.

"How did you get in?" Blaise looked accusingly at Harry, but Draco seemed more or less unsurprised.

"Godric let me in, also I set the password so I ought to be allowed in." Harry moved from the door and walked further into the room.

"We should have Slytherin as our portrait, he wouldn't let in any Gryffindor in without asking." Blaise glared at the amused portrait.

"I'm not sure that would help either, I would just use parseltongue to sweet talk my way in." Harry joked back, noticing when Blaise's scowl softened and Draco's smirk softened into a real smile.

"How very Slytherin of you." Draco noted and Harry openly laughed, something he felt he hadn't done genuinely in a long time.

"As droll as this small talk is, why are you here? Checking up on us per the Headmaster's orders?" Blaise spoke bluntly, something Harry appreciated. It was refreshing to have a conversation with someone who would not simply dance around him as if opening addressing the topic at hand would set him off.

"Well that is what the Headmaster intended, but I'm here on a social call, I just wanted to make sure that both of you moved in without any complications."

"We ran into minor issues with the Slytherins, but nothing worth mentioning." Draco shrugged, comforted with the idea that Harry worried about him and personally wanted to check up on them. He knew that Dumbledore could have easily sent Snape, he was Draco's Godfather, but it seemed that Harry had wanted to see them first.

"Well I don't want to cut into your time settling in tonight, but I do have another matter to address."

"So the great Harry Potter doesn't do anything for free." Blaise jabbed again, the ease that had just been created between them dissipated.

"I just wanted inform you about a student group that you may join if it interests you, but if you're going to be this way then I will retract my invitation." Harry responded coldly.

"Ignore him." Draco glared at his best mate, allowing Harry to continue.

"Well you should both know a little bit about it already, Umbridge's Inquisitorial Squad was founded to disband our student run training sessions."

"You're inviting us to join?" Draco asked surprised. He and Harry had little time to talk in the past few weeks and while Harry had promised that he would help Draco integrate into the Light, he had not expected to be allowed into their secret army.

"Well the first meeting is tomorrow and regardless if you join it would be smart for you to be there, the group as a whole has a lot of questions and it would best for you to speak for yourself, unless you don't want to in which case I can represent you."

"No, you're right, I should be there. You don't have to join if you don't want to, Blaise."

"No I think I will, it will be interesting and I always wondered what the Great Harry Potter was teaching his followers." Blaise mocked and Draco glared at him.

"If you're going to come you're going to have to drop that attitude." Harry stated while Blaise rolled his eyes. "I know you're skeptical, and I understand, you don't have much reason to believe me and you also need to look out for your best mate, I get it, but I'm not the enemy, you'd best not make me one." His tone stayed even but the threat was evident in his eyes.

"Alright then, we'll be there." Blaise backed down. He knew better than to piss of Harry, he generally left that for Draco and seeing as the blond was willing to follow along with the Gryffindor's plans he wasn't about to start a fight over it.

"Good. I will come by to collect you at half past nine, there are some things we must go over before the meeting."

"You're not our keeper, don't act like we're objects under your possession." Blaise glared, bringing up his feelings from earlier in the hall.

"I would never dream of it." Harry grinned cheekily, his eyes falling on Draco again and his look softened. "I'm really sorry I couldn't have been there sooner."

"I'm not your responsibility." Draco smiled, unlike Blaise he wasn't angry.

"I know." Harry smiled, before dropping the look and taking his leave.

"You have a lot to explain." Blaise stated bluntly when he was sure the portrait door was firmly shut. Draco sighed, rolling his eyes, knowing that he was going to have a long night ahead of him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I know that a lot of this is pretty fast, and rather OOC. Despite trying to be canon divergent, I did mean for the OOC to happen and I realize it is happening. There are reasons which I hope are described well enough throughout. As always I hope you are enjoying this so far and all comments and kudos are appreciated!


	3. Chapter 3

"What's going on between you and Potter?"

Draco sighed, he knew he wasn't going to get out of talking to Blaise. He was his best friend and he wasn't going to be making the mistake that Harry had in not talking to his best mate. Draco sat down on the couch and Blaise sat next to him waiting patiently for the blond to start.

"Well you know that I went to him last month to publicly align myself with the Light." Blaise nodded and Draco continued. "Well we haven't had much time to talk, but in the few times we have, he has treated me like an equal, given me my space, listened to what I had to say. I don't know, he's nothing like I would have expected."

"You know you can come to me with these things." Blaise sounded hurt and Draco smiled gently at his oldest and dearest friend.

"I know, but I'm not sure you could understand like he can. I can't explain it-"

"You are both very similar, I know." Blaise voiced what Hermione had thought earlier that day. Unlike Harry's friends, Blaise understood his best mate, and was more comfortable with the idea that someone else might even understand him better.

"I didn't mean to push you out, I just didn't know how to tell you everything with everyone in Slytherin breathing down my neck."

"I know, little brother." Blaise smiled fondly at the boy would would forever be like a sibling to him. He had never seen Draco so vulnerable before, and the fact that he was willing to open up and allow Blaise access to his thoughts was amazing and he had a feeling that Harry had something to do with the sudden transformation. "Come here."

Like a child, Draco crawled from his spot on the couch to the other end and allowed Blaise to envelope him in a warm hug.

"Thank you for being so understanding." Draco spoke into Blaise's shoulder. With all of the craziness that had been going on in Slytherin over the past month, Draco forgot how much he missed his brother and how much he relied on him to stay sane.

"What are brothers for?" Blaise smiled, vowing to himself to have a word with Harry when he could, and even to lighten up on his scrutinization of the boy.

* * *

Harry was pretty sure that he would be sent to Azkaban by the end of the year. Maybe sooner, Hermione and Ron really were testing his patients. They were in advanced potions and the two were sitting behind him. Snape had made Draco his partner again, though in light of recent events it was much preferable to having to deal with one of his two best friends. Currently, they were stage whispering about his odd relationship with the blond beside him and while Draco didn't seem to mind, or even hear them, for that matter, Harry really couldn't deal with them anymore.

"Honestly, you both need to shut it, I told you I will answer all of your questions tonight." Harry all but hissed at the two gossiping Gryffindors behind him.

"Is there a problem, Mr. Potter?" Professor Snape asked, his brow lifted as he looked down at the green-eyed boy from the side of his desk. Before Harry had time to respond, Neville seemed to have put too much lavender in his cauldron and his sleeping drought turned a sickly shade of green before exploding spectacularly in the poor boy's face. "Honestly Mr. Longbottom, how you managed to sneak your way into this class. Fifty points from Gryffindor." Snape growled, moving to take care of the mess.

"I still don't see why he has to be there." Ron glared the second he was sure that Snape would not be returning to further harass them.

"I am right here, Weasley." Draco drawled without looking back so only Harry could see the smirk on his face which was for the best, Harry figured, knowing that if Ron had seen it, he would have been livid.

"Honestly, can you all behave?" Harry rolled his eyes, focusing back on the task at hand. He knew that Ron could be impossibly childish, but he was honestly very surprised, and a bit upset over Hermione's catty attitude. He was sure that after their short talk the night before she would have left him alone, but it seemed that the know-it-all couldn't help herself.

"Harry's right." Hermione asserted firmly also turning back to her work, blushing in embarrassment at her behavior. The conversation ended and while Ron was still less than silently fuming, the rest of the lesson went by without an incident.

"You will leave the cauldrons on the desk, we will finish them next class. Mr. Potter, a word?" Snape dismissed the class, watching Harry closely while his classmates around him looked wearily between the two.

"Don't start a fight with him, there's no point." Hermione whispered to Harry on her way out.

"I wasn't planning on it." Harry bit back, not bothering to cover his anger toward her assumptions. She looked hurt, but said nothing, following Ron, who looked nearly ready to burst with anger, out and into the hall.

"I thought you said it made no sense to make enemies of people who should be your friends?" Draco questioned, using Harry's own words against him. Draco was leveling him with a scolding look that would have made Mrs. Wesley proud. Instantly Harry felt ashamed and he colored under the boy's harsh gaze.

"You're right." Harry backed down, bowing his head knowing that he was acting childishly towards his two closest friends. They would have not idea what as going through his mind anymore because he never let them in.

"Meet me in my dorm after, we need to talk." Draco brushed his hand over Harry's arm as he passed, making the action look accidental, but Harry knew better. He felt much calmer knowing that Draco seemed to understand.

It took longer than Harry thought it ought to for the students to empty the room. It seemed that some of the students were trying to hang back to see what would happen between the two, Harry noticed that most were members of the DA. He had a sinking feeling that Ron and Hermione were not the only two that he had completely shut out without meaning to. _Draco's right._

"Mr. Potter, was there any reason you decided to disrupt my class with your little squabble." Snape intoned when all of the students had left and Harry stood in the center of the room. As much as Harry was able to hold in his emotions around his peers, there was always something about Snape that hit a chord in him.

"No Sir." Harry chose to keep his responses short, if he didn't speak then he wouldn't lose his temper and say something that he didn't actually want to.

"I detect an attitude, I might have to place you in detention." Snape's brow rose in question as Harry visibly blanched. He was sure that Snape knew something big was going to happen that night and this was his way of stopping it from happening.

"I'm sure that won't be necessary, Sir." Harry spoke evenly, but was clearly shaking.

"I'm sure." Snape looked down at Harry again before continuing. "If you hurt my Godson-"

"I assure I would never, not intentionally." Harry cut him off before he could threaten him with something surely painful. Snape had warned him off hurting Draco before, the first time when Draco had gone to Dumbledore to announce his allegiance, and about every week since. If nothing else, Snape was persistent and seemed to think that something was going on, which to his credit there was, just nothing meant to harm Draco, but rather to make his life easier while at Hogwarts.

"I know that you're hiding something, _Potter_ , and while the Headmaster might not be concerned, I am. I won't have you and your foolish friends running around this school creating a muck."

"I assure, you _Sir_ , I am not hiding anything. But even if I was, what makes you think you could stop me?" Harry dared the man, pushing his limits. After all the fighting he had been doing with his friend, after making sure for so long that he remained calm that it felt good to let some of his anger lose.

" _Careful, boy, don't test me._ " Snape got in Harry's face, staring down at the boy. While Harry was smaller in stature, he stood his ground and stared right back. He felt the man try to probe at his mind again, but Harry's defenses were strong and he barely twitched at the intrusion. Snape put more of his own magic into the spell, and Harry's barriers began to shake. He almost felt the need to dip into the magic he didn't want anyone, but Draco, to know he had access to, but luckily the man stopped, backing off with an odd look on his face. "Get out."

With a curt nod, Harry left, knowing that the conversation was far from over, but he wasn't about to test Snape further. Also he simply had too much to do before the night was up to bother with the man.

As Harry made his way to meet up with Draco he almost wished he was still talking to Snape. It was easier to get mad and act irrationally, so much easier than having to explain himself and his actions. He knew that he had been shutting everyone out, but especially after Sirius' death he didn't want anyone to get too close to him, he didn't want more blood on his hands. Draco seemed to understand, however, and whenever he tried to push the blond away, the boy just got closer to him. His strong, silent demeanor always seemed to fall apart when it came to the blond, something that Harry refused to over analyze.

He came to the portrait quicker than he would have liked and took a moment to collect his thoughts before entering. A fire was lit in the hearth and Draco sat before it, his gaze fixed on the dancing flames. Blaise was no where in sight.

"Hey." Harry spoke softly, as if not to disrupt the beautiful picture that the blond made.

"Oh, hey." Draco looked up to Harry, his gaze uncertain. "You know it's not fair to them that you're always coming here to talk to me, but won't give them the time of day." Draco's gaze bore into Harry and the Gryffindor instantly felt ashamed. He was right.

"I know." Harry looked down, trying to rid his mind of the look that Draco was giving him.

"I made a decision. I wont go tonight until you talk to them. It's not fair for them." Draco spoke firmly, letting Harry know that there was no room for argument. At first Harry was mad, though they hadn't been friends in the past, ever since he changed sides, Draco had pretty easily gone along with what Harry had to say. But Draco was right, he was being really unfair. "You can talk here, I told Blaise to go somewhere else for a bit and I can leave too if it helps. I know it will be more private than your common room." "Thank you." Harry knew it was best to agree with him. The young aristocrat hadn't asserted himself in such a way to Harry in a civil situation before, but he knew that despite their friendship, Draco would expect him to listen. Normally Harry would fight the boy a bit more, but he knew he was right.

"I'll go get them. It will be okay, they're your friends." Draco smiled slightly, leaving the room and Harry in search for the two people that Harry least wanted to speak to.

Harry sat nervously in the seat that Draco had just vacated. He couldn't help, but fidget as he waited for what felt like the march to his own death. He knew that he was being over dramatic, that Hermione at least would stop her ranting long enough to listen to what he had to say, and while Ron would act first then think later, he would come around. He just couldn't help but feel like an arse for the way that he had been acting and he knew that he deserved all the yelling that he would be likely to receive.

Hermione was the first to enter the common room, her face set and calm, while Ron stomped in behind her, his anger clear on his face.

"So you're sending _Malfoy_ for us now? Can't even talk to us yourself?" Ron demanded, and Harry's jaw set as he prepared himself for the longest talk of his young life.

" _Ronald._ " Hermione admonished glaring at him before turning to Harry, waiting to hear his answer.

"He offered to get you for me." Harry responded lamely. While Hermione seemed to accept his response, her lips were pursed to show her disapproval. "I didn't want to talk to you two to fight, I know that I haven't been a good friend as of late and I know that you have a lot of questions, so I wanted to answer them before the meeting tonight." Harry offered himself up to his friends and while Hermione seemed to look approvingly at him, Ron just seemed to shake even more in rage.

"Isn't it a bit late?" Ron spat back, turning to leave, but Hermione's small hand around his wrist stopped him.

"Sit, Ron, we all need this." The boy grumbled, but took a seat, glaring at the ground unwilling to look at Harry. Hermione sighed, knowing that she would not get better than that, and sat beside Harry on the couch.

"Harry, we just want to know if you are okay." Hermione started slowly, putting her hand on his. "Just so much has happened since last year, and we know that it's been tough on you. We just want you to be honest and tell us, are you okay?"

And then Harry saw it. Beyond Ron's angry exterior, he was looking at Harry as a friend still. He was clearly worried about his best mate, though he didn't show it well, and as Harry had thought about the past summer and the few times that Ron tried to seek him out. He had snubbed him every time and eventually the red-head had given up, he had been aggressive ever since, but had never left Harry's side. Normally Ron would have just left, he didn't often stick around when upset, but for Harry he had stayed. After all that they had been through, Ron was not going to abandon him again. And Hermione, her way of showing that she cared was through mothering and bugging someone until they gave in and spilled their secrets. They had both meant well and Harry had thrown them aside and clung to Draco because the boy just seemed to understand without needing to be told. But Harry couldn't run anymore, hiding was for cowards and he was a Gryffindor.

"I'm fine." Harry said and Hermione glared at him. "I mean it, I wasn't fine over the summer, I was a mess, and I'm sorry for pushing you away, but I'm fine now, I really am."

"Alright then, well tell us what's been going on, you hardly talk to us anymore." Hermione pushed and Ron relaxed seeing that Hermione was more relaxed.

"Well I'm not sure where to start, but I suppose I should start with Malfoy." Harry ignored the look that Ron gave him. He knew that skipping the occurrences of the summer, and how he came into his magic after Sirius' death, he knew they would be mad when they found out, but he was still weary to let anyone know. Again, Draco seemed to always be the exception.

"Yeah why do you trust him?" Ron spoke up for the first time since his earlier outburst.

"That's not exactly something I can explain." Harry ignored the glares from the two and continued. "He came to me directly. That takes a lot of courage when you consider our past." Ron snorted at that, but Harry pushed on ignoring him as best he could. "He openly apologized, something I never would have thought possible. He was completely open with me, admitted that he was wrong and an arse. He told me everything that he was tasked to do by Voldemort and then he followed me to Dumbledore to take his stand."

To this Ron and Hermione both gasped at this. They hadn't heard anything about Voldemort or of his actions since the battle at the end of the last school year and Harry hadn't even gave them the slightest hint that he had more information than them.

"And you didn't tell us this why?" Hermione demanded and Ron nodded, too mad to speak.

"It wasn't my thing to tell you!" Harry defended himself. He knew that lying to them and avoiding his friends was wrong, but this he felt was not an issue. Draco's story was his own to tell.

"Didn't you think that telling us at least something would have been better?" Hermione glared.

"What do you think I'm trying to do now?" Harry pleaded. "I know how much the two of you value your privacy as do I. This is really Draco's story to tell and I'm not going to tell you just because you're my friends. You would expect the same kind of respect."

"Harry's right." Hermione sat back down and Harry's words seemed to even sink into Ron and the red-head seemed to understand a bit more the relationship between his best mate and his former school rival. "I really am very proud of you." Hermione pulled Harry into a tight hug and the boy let out a breath that he hadn't realized how long he had held, knotted in his chest. He had missed this, he had missed his friends.

"Are we interrupting something?" Blaise asked with a cheeky grin. Draco stood beside him by the entrance to their common room with a small smile on his own lips.

"Why yes you are." Harry joked back, pulling back from Hermione and checking the time. "We aught to go to dinner and then come back here before the meeting, there are still a few things we need to go over, and something that I need you two to sign."

"I'm not signing any magically binding contract." Blaise said, completely serious.

"Don't worry, Zabini, it's just a privacy agreement to protect all of the members, but we can talk about it more later, I'm famished." Harry turned and saw that Ron was nodding in agreement to the idea of food and Harry couldn't help but chuckle. "Come on, we have the rest of the night to bicker as much as you want, I just want to eat first."

For the first time since Sirius' death, Harry felt comfortable around his friends. He was laughing and smiling with them and it wasn't forced, he knew that Draco had a large part to do with it and he was eternally grateful. When he had first agreed to helping Draco move to the Light he had known that he would be helping out the boy more than could have been repaid, but now he wasn't so sure. He had underestimated Draco and what his friendship could do for him. He would have to thank the blond later, but for now he would just enjoy this moment, the meeting later that night would be more than hectic and he knew that happy moments like these would be far and few.


	4. Chapter 4

The din in the Room of Requirement would have been enough to wake the castle had Harry not requested a fully soundproof room. It was only five past ten, but the entire DA had already arrived and most were none too happy about having two Slytherins in their ranks. Harry was so happy to have Ron and Hermione at his side again. They might not have been all patched up, but they were at least willing to stand by him and he desperately needed that at the moment. Draco and Blaise stood to his right and Hermione and Ron to his left, Harry had a strange feeling of being flanked by body guards and as he watched his fellow classmates continue to bicker amongst each other and occasionally stopping to glare at him. Harry wondered if he actually needed the protection.

"Is this how you handle your followers?" Blaise nearly sneered and Draco jabbed him in the side before throwing an apologetic look towards Harry. They had all gone to dinner only hours ago and all five of them had gone back to the private common room to finalize the paperwork needed to allow the Slytherin's into the meeting.

"They're friends, not followers." Hermione spoke back cooly and Harry rolled his eyes.

"Play nice." Harry shook his head, his demeanor completely changing when his eyes landed on the youngest Weasley, who seemed to have had enough as well made her way to the front of them room. "This is how things are handled." Harry whispered so only the four beside him would hear before Ginny walked up to them.

"This is madness." Ginny rolled her eyes at her peer's actions. "Well what are you waiting for?"

"You, actually." Harry grinned back, his eyes twinkling in a very Dumbledore manner.

"Honestly? Always cleaning up your messes." Ginny mumbled, before turning around to face the room again. "ALRIGHT EVERYBODY JUST SHUT IT!" The room instantly went silent and a few of the older students who had been on the wrong end of Ginny's wand and temper in the past instantly blanched.

"Impressive." Blaise smirked approvingly.

"Watch it, Zabini." Ron jumped in front of his sister.

"I can take care of myself." Ginny pushed her over-protective brother to the side and took her place next to Harry besides Hermione.

"Later, children." Harry laughed before turning to face the silent group before him. "I know that you all have a lot of questions which is why I called this meeting. We are going to do our best to answer all of your questions, but you have to understand that not everything can be answered. So I know that many of you want your questions answered now, but I am asking you all to wait your turn. I'm sure a lot of you have similar questions and I want to make sure that everyone can hear us."

The Room seemed to understand what Harry needed and a table with chairs enough for the six in the front of the room to sit at that looked similar to a muggle press conference set up. They took their seats and the rest of the rooms occupants situated themselves in the rows of chairs that also materialized for them. The group at the table waited for everyone to settle in before continuing.

"So I think I know a few of your questions already and I'm going ahead and going to address them. First, I know that you're wondering why Draco and Blaise are here." Again the DA members began to speak over one another and this time Harry let them die down on their own. "I can give you my side, but I think it would be more effective for Draco and Blaise to speak for themselves. I expect you all to stay quiet for them and listen to them with the same respect that you would give me. If we have any problems then I will deal with you myself." Harry sat back in his chair and looked to his left where Blaise and Draco sat tensely looking out to the see of angry and hurt faces.

"I suppose I should start with an apology." Draco started out, his voice wavering until he felt Harry's hand brush against his own under the table. The touch was subtle and he was sure that no one had noticed, but it gave him the strength to forge on. "I know that I have been horrible to most of you in this room directly, especially to Harry, and I have no reason other than the fact that I was an immature coward who didn't think to question the lies that were taught to me at a young age. I know that I will never be able to atone for the things that my father has done, but I want to make it clear that while he may be my father I am my own person and I object to his beliefs and his practices."

The faces of the crowd slowly began to change as Draco talked. Many seemed surprised and impressed at how open he was being and how he spoke of his father with such disgust. Others were whispering about whether or not they thought that it was all a clever plot to get the secrets of the Light and the DA to report back to Voldemort.

"Silence!" All eyes fell on Harry who looked none too happy with his peers. "Wouldn't you think that I made sure he was being honest before I let him near any of you? Give me more credit than that." Blaise snorted next to him, but Harry ignored him. "Not only has he sacrificed his way of life and well being by aligning himself with us, but he also gave very useful information to the Order, which no I will not divulge here, and if they trust him, if I trust him, then you can at least feel certain that he's not here to harm anyone. You can continue."

"Thanks." The wavering in Draco's voice was obvious and he looked to Harry first before continuing. "Again I'm so sorry for all that I have done, but I want to move past that and prove that I am not that person." He stopped again and this time Blaise began to speak.

"As you all know my family has never taken a side in this war, nor in the last. I am here of my own accord as well, my mother's beliefs have nothing to do with my own. I don't believe I've ever had a run in with anyone here and I hope to keep it that way." The speech as short, sweet, and to the point, very much like Blaise's personality.

"Thank you." Harry smiled warmly at the Slytherin's, ignoring the commotion that his actions started and addressed to room again. "I know that it will not be easy for you to accept that we have Slytherin's in our ranks, but I expect all of you to at least leave them be. Now I know that the other topic many of you want to know about is the events that the Ministry at the end of last year." Here Harry's voice faltered at the thought of his Godfather and Hermione took over for him.

"What we can tell you is that we had reason to believe that something was happening that night in the Department of Mysteries. We formed a small group, the best trained of the DA, and did what we thought had to be done. Voldemort was there, that is not a rumor. A lot happened that night and I know that I for one don't want to relive it. If you have questions for anyone of us as an individual you will have to ask us privately and I cannot promise that anyone will be willing to retell those events. I think we can go into questions now if anyone has one that we haven't already covered."

"Was facing Voldemort scary?" One of the younger Gryffindors, a third year asked timidly and Harry couldn't help, but smile.

"I suppose my opinion is a bit biased, this was my fifth time facing him if you count the first time when I was a baby, but it was. That's why we're training you all here. I hope that no one has to fight, I don't want more bloodshed because of this stupid war, but I want more than anything to make sure that you're all at least capable of protecting yourself."

"It was terrifying." Ron cut in. "But we were with Harry and he trained us well. I don't think that any of us would still be here if it weren't for Harry." At this Harry began to blush and he smiled thankfully to his best mate. Despite all the fighting, Ron was still there to support him when it mattered most.

"Ron's right. I trust Harry's judgement and without him we really would have been in trouble that night, we all owe him." Neville piped up from the crowed and beside him Luna nodded fervently.

"Harry is a real leader, I trust him with my life."

"He has never steered us wrong before, he's not about to now." Ginny followed up, besides Harry, smiling brightly at him.

In the past, Draco would have scoffed at the almost blind trust that the DA had in Harry. He would have spoke down on how their loyalty would make even a Hufflepuff sick. He might have even gone so far as to accuse Harry of putting all of them under a spell, that there was no way he was smart enough to be a true leader. But sitting in that room with so many people who willingly spoke up on his part when it was obvious that Harry had no wish for them to do so warmed Draco's heart. He wished that he could have such friendships as Harry had; he even found himself hoping that these people who so fiercely stood up for their own would one day welcome him and Blaise. He wanted nothing more than to be part of the family that he saw before him. He wanted to belong.

"Thank you, everyone." Harry smiled lovingly to all of his friends and Draco couldn't help but notice the pang of jealousy he felt that the looks weren't directed towards him.

" _What am I thinking?_ "

Before Draco could get his bearings, Harry and the rest of the group at the table had stood and gone down to talk with their friends. Blaise stood beside him, watching his best mate carefully. It wasn't until Harry had returned, looking rather concerned at Draco that the blond was pulled from his thoughts.

"Are you okay? You know they don't bite." Harry said smiling slightly, trying to hide his obvious concern.

"I'm fine, just thinking." Draco said shakily though he didn't miss the look that Blaise and Harry shared over his head.

"Alright then, I'm going to start sending them back in small groups, I think it would be best if you two waited around for a bit before you left, if that's okay."

"Sure, Potter, whatever is easier." Blaise answered for them and the brunette returned to his friends. "You sure you're alright there, little brother?"

"Yeah, nothing to worry about." But Draco was worried. He wasn't an idiot, he knew he was developing some level of feelings for the brave Gryffindor and that was what was scaring him.

"Okay everyone I just need your attention for a another few minutes! I want to make sure that everyone gets back to their dorms okay without running into any issues. An older student should escort one or two younger ones at a time first and then everyone else can go in small groups after. We're going to meet again next week, the time and date will be sent via the same method as last year, younger years get the information from an older year and we will provide you with the coins next time. Also next week will be a practical lesson so please be prepared."

As the students began to organize themselves to leave, Ginny made her way from the crowd to Draco and Blaise. Many of the students still in the room watched her tensely not sure of what was about to happen. Harry especially watched her carefully, he knew that Ginny wouldn't start anything, especially when she just told everyone to trust him and his judgements, but it still made him nervous to watch her approach the two Slytherins. For their part, Blaise and Draco were also uneasy. They had heard of Ginny and her penchant for nasty hexes and neither wanted to test the rumors. When Ginny stopped in front of the boys she simply extended her hand, a light smile on her face.

"I think it was very brave, and dare I say Gryffindor, of you both to come here tonight. I just want you to know that I appreciate that and I am willing to start fresh." Blaise and Draco scoffed at her comparison of their actions, but they both shook her hand. The breath that everyone seemed to be holding was let out and the tension that existed between the two Slytherins and rest of the students began to subside.

"Thank you." Draco could see why Harry trusted the red-head so much. She was strong, someone who most likely learned to hold her own because of her six brothers, and she was smart. He knew then that he wanted to get to know her better and that she would be someone smart to keep close.

"No, thank you." Ginny could tell that something was very different about Harry and especially after what she saw tonight, she was sure that Draco was the one who brought about that change. Of course a part of her was sad that she couldn't be the reason that he smiled so brightly, but more importantly she was just happy that someone could bring the old Harry back.

Slowly the room began to empty out until only Ginny, Harry, Blaise and Draco remained. It was nearing midnight and Harry was more than eager to return to the dorms and go to bed, but the look Ginny was throwing him made him hold back. He hadn't been able to get out of talking to Ron and Hermione today and something told him he would also have to talk to the youngest Weasley as well.

"You guys go on ahead, we'll see you at breakfast." Ginny smiled and waved the boys off, waiting for the door to shut before the room began to change and Harry found himself standing next to a comfortable looking couch in front of a roaring fire. Ginny took the lead and sat down first, extending her hand out to Harry. The boy hesitated at first, he loved Ginny dearly, but he wasn't sure if this was another poor attempt on her part at seducing him. He'd had enough drama for one day and he was honestly too tired to deal with more. "Harry, I'm not trying anything, you just look like you need a hug."

At her words, Harry visibly sagged down into the couch into her open arms. He buried his face in Ginny's hair breathing in her spiced sent that was unmistakably the smell of Molly's kitchen. It was home. He wasn't sure how long they just sat there, but it was the most relaxing time he'd had since the start of term. Finally, feeling the call of sleep tugging at him, Harry pulled away.

"I know that my idiot brother and Hermione have been pestering you non-stop recently, which is part of the reason why I haven't tried to talk to you yet. I understand that you don't always want to talk, but don't forget that either way, I am here for you. You can always come to me if you need me."

"Thank you, Gin. I'm sorry that I can't be there for you the way you need me." At this Ginny scoffed and brushed him off with a smile.

"Don't you worry, I think I'm a bit guilty of falling in love with love and not you. Not that you're not a good person! You're a great person, I didn't mean that I couldn't love you, I just meant that I don't love you in that way. Of course I love you, you're like a brother to me and-"

"Ginny, calm down! I know what you're trying to say!" Harry laughed, the tension slowly rolling off of him.

"Oh good," Ginny blushed deeply, turning the tables and burying her face into Harry's shoulder.

"It's getting late, love. We ought to head back." As much as Harry wanted to just sit there and talk more with the younger girl, he knew that they'd better head back or they would fall asleep there and that would be interesting to have to explain in the morning, especially to Ron who still wasn't all that happy with him.

Harry and Ginny made it back to Gryffindor tower without incident. As Harry lay down to sleep that night, he couldn't help but smile. Things finally felt like they were going right.

* * *

Lord Voldemort was less than pleased. He had called a meeting of only his closest followers, though it did not escape his notice that Severus Snape was not among them. _Interesting._

"My Lord if I may." One of the death eaters from the ring standing around him started to speak, but Voldemort instantly hit him with a cruciatus curse. He ended it just as soon as it started however and he loomed over the man with a sneer set on his face.

"Lucius, I would think you wise enough not to speak. You are the reason we called this meeting."

"Sire?"

"Crucio." Again the hooded man let out a cry as pain split through his body once again. Again the spell was cut short. "You failed to keep a leash on your son. Should I consider this your betrayal as well?"

"No, Sire I-"

" _Crucio_."

"My Lord I might have a solution to the lack of student spy." Another death eater spoke out, ending Lucius' torture.

"And what might that be?" Voldemort stepped over the trembling man on the floor without a care, kicking him in the side in the process, and glided over to the death eater who had just spoken.

"Well my Lord. I also have a child in the school, I'm would be honored if you considered our family completely at your service."

"I would like to hear your plan further. It's decided, the rest of you are dismissed. One last thing though," Voldemort's face contorted into a look of maniacal delight. "Along with Potter and his friends, young Draco will now join the ranks of your top targets. Remember I only want Harry alive, he's mine to finish. But if you capture any of the others they are useless unless they have information. Kill them." A very feminine gasp rang clear in the open room and red eyes glared down at Narcissa Malfoy.

" _Crucio_."


	5. Chapter 5

There was a cold draft in the dungeons and it made Snape's cloak whip around him. It was his turn to patrol and it was nearing midnight. The night had been uneventful, but it was far from over and in all his years being a spy, he knew that the cold feeling crawling up his spine could only mean that something bad was going to happen. He took his last round of the hall and nothing seemed out of place, keeping a trained eye for any sign of movement. There was a noise from around the corner and Snape turned quickly to catch the student before they got away.

"Mr. Nott I should have known. You have been getting yourself into an awful lot of trouble recently." Snape sneered down at one of his sixth years. He had never liked Nott and had always thought him to be a particularly slippery snake.

"Not as much trouble as you're going to be in." Nott challenged back, a smirk plastered on his face. Snape merely raised his brow in response and Nott continued, knowing that he had his professor's attention. "There was a meeting tonight, a wonder that you were not invited." Before Nott had a chance to react, Snape had grabbed his left hand and pulled up his sleeve expecting to see the dark mark glaring back at him, but the boy's arm was blemish free. "What did you expect to find? You know he would never mark a child."

"What do you know?" Snape's voice was fierce and Nott nearly cracked from the pressure, but he kept his composure.

"Nothing really." He tried to be evasive, but Snape grabbed him by the shoulders and got into his face.

"Tell me if you know what's good for you."

"Threatening students, I see." McGonnagal appeared at the end of the hall walking quickly to see what was going on.

"This is none of your concern." Snape bit back, glaring at his student when he noticed that Nott had gone from smirking up at him to looking terrified. " _Damn Slytherins_."

"The well being of all the students is my concern." McGonnagal clipped back and Snape unhanded the boy.

"Thank you, Professor." Nott moved quickly from Snape to the Deputy Headmistress seeming to look for cover.

"Go back to your room, Mr. Nott, I will have a word with you later."

"Thank you so much, Professor-"

"Don't go thanking me just yet, I still want to know why you are out of your room so late." Instantly the boy's facade dropped and his face hardened in a glare. "I see." McGonnagal watched the boy closely, starting to realize that maybe Snape hadn't been out of line to corner the boy, he was certainly up to something, she wasn't blind to the way Slytherins operated. "Severus, meet me up in the Headmaster's office, I will make sure Mr. Nott gets to his rooms."

"I'm not sure that's necessary, I can make it to my rooms on my own."

"I'm sure you can, but I want to make sure you don't wander." McGonnagal said in a way that left no room for argument. She took her leave, making sure that Nott was following her as Severus turned in the opposite direction to head up to Dumbledore.

Something was terribly wrong and Severus knew that Nott openly goading him like that shouldn't have caused such a reaction in him, but he had been on edge since the start of term. Despite his best efforts, the Dark Lord was starting to doubt him and with how long he'd been under cover Severus could not bare to have his cover blown now. He would have to talk to Albus about this knew piece of information before McGonnagal returned. It wasn't that he didn't trust the woman, it was quite the contrary actually. He really wished that he could talk to her, she had always been like a mother figure for him especially since his own mother died when he was so young, but Albus had been very adamant that no one could know the true extent of his sacrifices for the Light. The fewer people who knew the fewer people who could get tortured and accidentally give him away. With a great, weighing sigh, Severus pushed open the door to Albus' office, not bothering to knock.

"Severus, my boy, what seems to be the problem?" Albus called cheerily from his seat behind his desk.

"We have a situation, Theodore Nott confronted me in the hallway not ten minutes ago to tell me that Voldemort called a meeting tonight and that I wasn't invited."

"And how did Mr. Nott come by this information?" The older wizard seemed to be unfazed by the information.

"I'm not sure, I even checked his arm, but he's not marked."

"Severus don't you think that panicking like that will get back to the wrong people? You ought to be more careful."

"Are you really telling _me_ to be more careful?" Severus nearly roared, not checking his temper. He began to rub his temples to ward of the impending headache. He normally would be more level headed, but with trying to keep up and appearance, gather important information, and worrying about Draco and what Potter was up to, Severus was just too tired to act like an adult.

"You need to calm down, we can work this out rationally." Albus tried, this time his smile faltering. Sometimes he wondered if Harry and Severus ever noticed that they were very similar, neither could really hold in their temper, though Harry seemed to be quickly mastering that skill, much sooner than Severus at any rate which amused Albus to no end.

"Rationally? Tell me what is rational about this situation?" Severus screamed back, staggering back into the chair he often sat in.

"Well it would help if you stopped yelling." The smart remark made Severus more cross, but he held his tongue He knew better than to continue his rant, as Albus often reminded, he was no longer a child, he hadn't been for a very long time. "This might be a good thing, I would suggest starting to weed through your students and figure out who is going to Voldemort, I don't think Nott was the one, and if he was, he wouldn't have gone alone. If his actions in the past prove anything, he enjoys leading, but only if he has enough followers and an audience. I doubt he would go to face Voldemort alone."

"I would have used Draco to figure all this out before. I no longer have a direct way to the students."

"That may not be true, I'm sure that young Mr. Malfoy still has a friend or two in his house, I'm sure if you talk to him you can figure something out. Until then watch how you act, especially around Nott."

"Of course." Severus conceded knowing a lost battle when he saw it.

"We have other concerns as well, how did your conversation with Harry go?" Severus bit back a remark about how no other student was ever graced with the honor of being on first name basis with the older man, but he thought better of it.

"Not well."

"Ah, was that due to your temper, his, or a bit of both?" Albus' cheerful smile was back and it made Severus want to scream.

"He's an intolerable brat."

"So your temper then. It's a wonder that a young man with emotions so vast as his is suddenly able to reel them in, it makes you wonder if he's alright."

"I never wonder about his personal well being." It was childish at best, but Severus was not going to start talking about feelings especially those of a boy he could hardly care less about.

"Oh now, that's a lie. You only wish he was more like James so you would be justified in hating him. He's not like either of his parents, though, and I'm sure you can see that. He is coming into himself quite well."

"You mean he's coming into his magic?" Severus diverted the conversation that he never wanted to have with a question to distract him.

"So you have noticed his sudden spike in magic too? I'm sure you saw it when he saved Mr. Malfoy nearly a week ago. Minerva mentioned it to me, and even when he was here last, you noticed that you couldn't break down his mental barriers to see into his mind.Yes, he hides it well, I'm sure that most of his friends don't even know, but then I don't blame him for keeping it a secret. He's dealing with the whole thing on his own quite well."

"That's what troubles me, what is he up to?" Severus sounded genuinely worried now, but whether is was because of Harry or for Harry Albus didn't know.

"I think that he realizes that many would make a monster of him for his new found power. Being in the public eye has forced him to grow up faster and I believe that his sudden ability to act calm in the face of others is his acceptance that he must have a public face to contrast his private one. I'm just afraid that he's hiding from everyone."

"I don't think he's hiding from Draco." Severus sounded put out by this, but he didn't say as much. The look on his face was calculating and Albus was sure that this time he was worried about Harry's actions and not for the boy himself.

"He won't hurt Mr. Malfoy, that's not something you have to worry about." Severus was about to argue, but a knock at the door interrupted him. "Come in, Minerva."

"We're not finished with this conversation." Severus said through gritted teeth.

"We can finish it when you can talk about Harry being his own man." Albus responded gravely, his eyes boring into the dark eyes of Severus Snape. His whole demeanor changed when he looked up to Minerva, his smile back in place. "Lemon drop?"

"No, not now Albus, we have to discuss something very important." While Albus seemed a little put out at her attitude, Severus couldn't help but snort at the easy relationship between the two, he never knew anyone who could brush the old wizard aside so easily as Minerva always did.

"Are you speaking about Mr. Nott?" Minerva nodded glad that they were getting straight to the point. "Severus and I already discussed this, but we're going to let the incident go."

"What?" Minerva was clearly outraged and Severus was glad he was not the only one not able to hold their temper.

"It seems Mr. Nott has intelligence on Voldemort, to what extent we don't know, but I think allowing him to think that Severus is in trouble for his actions and that he himself is not in trouble will boost his ego enough for him to get cocky and slip up."

"Are you sure that is wise, he is just a child?" Minerva looked between the two men noticing both their grave expressions.

"Potter is just a child." Severus said quietly and a sudden chill went through the room.

"You are too right, Severus, we will have to keep an eye on them, on all of them." Albus nodded grimly. The conversation was over, there was nothing more to be said, not that the three wanted to say anything more. There was much to do now and too little time.

* * *

Harry felt like he was on top of the world. Nothing in his life in the past year had ever felt this right. He was flying over the Quidditch Pitch conducting tryouts for the Gryffindor team. He was not surprised to know that he had made team captain, he had actually been rather expecting it. Katie Bell hovered beside him watching the potential new team members with interest. She was the only other member from the original team left and Harry was heavily relying on her to make the decisions on making a team as great as the one they had just the year previous. Most of the students trying out where only there to get closer to Harry, but Draco and Blaise sitting silently in the stands seemed to ward off many of the younger students who were too afraid to get near Slytherins. Idiots aside, Harry was too happy to let them bother him anyway, the ones who came with a serious desire to play on the team seemed to be decent flyers.

"Ginny seems very strong, I would think she'd make a great chaser." Katie nodded in the direction of the red-head who was flying circles around her peers and easily taking control of the quaffle and speeding off towards the goal.

"I agree, Cormac also seems pretty good, he's blocked a lot of Ginny's attempts at scoring and she's done some pretty daring and crafty fake outs." Harry nodded, zeroing in on the slightly stuck up Gryffindor. He might not like the younger boy, but he couldn't deny that he was a good keeper.

"He is, but I'm not sure about his attitude." Katie shook her head as Cormac made an overly dramatic flip to add flare to the save, but missed the quaffle and Ginny did a victory lap around the goals looking rather smug while Cormac looked less then happy with himself.

"Well is there another alternative?" Harry rolled his eyes at the show off.

"I say we gather them all in and start the tryouts, I think they've warmed up enough."

"Okay you gather them up, I want to look at the sign up sheet and start crossing off names and staring the ones we're interested in."

"Okay sounds like a plan." Katie flashed him a smile before charming her voice so she could be heard over all the noise. "Alright warm up is over, everyone dismount and wait on the ground for us to call you for your try out."

Harry was already on the ground by the time Katie started gathering everyone and he took a seat next to Draco and Blaise. The two had agreed to come out and watch the tryouts under the ruse of watching the competition, but Harry suspected that they just wanted to get out of their common room. Since they had moved in and the meeting had taken place, the Gryffindors had begun to treat them better, but they still weren't welcome by the general population in the Gryffindor common room so they spent most of their time alone in their own rooms, though Harry and Ginny visited quite often. Harry also suspected that Draco just wanted to be out on the field himself. With their change in allegiance it would be impossible for Draco to be back on the Slytherin team and Harry knew that must have really upset the blond. Harry knew that flying and quidditch were both escapes for them and that not having that outlet must really affect Draco. Harry was currently looking into a rule that might or might not bar Draco from joining the Gryffindor team, though the Slytherin had no knowledge of his research, if nothing else then Harry would at least have the blond practice with them and even have him help with the recruiting process.

"I know they're not the best, but I see a few potential stars in the mess." Harry laughed when Blaise gave him a look that clearly read that he was less than impressed.

"You really do have low standards."

"And you don't know anything about quidditch, so I'm sure you're standards don't count." Draco rolled his eyes at his best mate, his eyes trained on the students who were flying down to the ground and dismounting, it didn't escape anyone's notice that Cormac was diving at a neck breaking speed. He pulled up in time not to crash, but only barely.

"Honestly that boy is going to get himself killed." Hermione's voice startled the three as she took a seat on the bench bellow them.

"I think he's trying to impress you Granger, he only started the dive when you walked in." Blaise teased and Hermione's cheeks colored slightly.

"Well he's a moron, I wouldn't be caught dead with an idiot of his measure."

"And yet you are dating Weasley." Blaise drawled and three pairs of angry eyes fell upon him. "Alright I take it back, he's not that bad." Blaise said with his hands up in mock surrender, Harry and Hermione just rolled their eyes and looked back on the field in time to see Ron touch down, a bit shaky in his landing.

"Honestly, Blaise." Draco sighed under his breath, annoyed that despite his best efforts, Blaise still didn't take it to heart when Draco told him to play nice.

"Sorry." The response was even quieter, but the all three heard him, each choosing to let it slide, there was no reason to start a fight right in the middle of the pitch. Before things could get more awkward, Katie joined them to collect Harry to start the tryouts.

"Draco, you should probably join us, if you need a broom I'm sure there are extras in the shed, but we're going to need more than two people to run the try out." Katie said and surprised the four sitting before her. Katie had never been one to be mean to the Slytherins, but she hadn't really been nice to them either. Her invitation was more than that as it clearly said that she had no problems with him, or with Blaise, and that she accepted that it was possible for them to really change for the better.

"Oh okay, I hadn't really dressed for that though." Draco looked down at his attire, it was the weekend and he had chosen to dress in one of his simpler muggle suits.

"I'm sure Harry has an extra seeker's training uniform in his locker, don't you Harry?" The sudden intimacy of the situation made both boys blush, but Harry nodded anyways.

"Yeah I keep one extra, but it's a bit small, you might have to alter it." Harry stood and Draco made to follow, very aware of Blaise's eyes following them. Oh this was going to be interesting.

In the privacy of the locker room, both Harry and Draco were forced to see this situation at face value. Had this been Ron or one of his other mates, Harry would not have these butterflies fly around in his stomach. Draco had borrowed clothes from Blaise in the past and while he had found it weird at first, that was nothing compared to his pure longing to be in Harry's clothes. He wanted more than anything to be surrounded by the brunet. " _That's only because he makes you feel safe_." Draco tried to convince himself, but he knew that it was much more than that.

"Well here." Harry awkwardly handed over his extra practice jersey and turned around to face the wall, allowing the other boy a small amount of privacy. He would never have thought to do that around any other mate, but this was difference. Everything with Draco was different.

Draco made quick work of changing, noticing that the under shirt was rather big for him and he wondered how broad Harry's chest and shoulders must be to consider the clothes too small. Of course this line of thought only brought images of a shirtless Harry into his mind which he instantly banished, not wishing to face the consequences of such thoughts. Without thinking further about his situation, Draco finished changing and cleared his throat to let Harry know that he was all set. When Harry turned around the sight before him took his breath away. Draco stood before him a bit awkward, swinging his hands at his sides and staring at the floor, but Harry was more enthralled with how the uniform looked on the boy. He was sure that Draco had spelled his clothing, because it looked much smaller than Harry remembered. He wondered just how small the other boy was, what it would feel like to press into his smaller frame, would they fit together like a puzzle? If Harry was in the right state of mind, he would have been more concerned about these sudden and random thoughts, but the way that the blond looked with the red contrasting his pale skin and the way the fabric hung to his body was driving him mad. Without thinking Harry slowly walked forward, mildly surprised when Draco didn't move. They were so close, he could feel the breath of the other boy on his lips. Was he really that much taller than the blond? Had he grown that much over the summer? Emotions that Harry could not read were flitting through Draco's eyes, but again the boy didn't move. There lips were so close he could almost taste him. He only had to move forward just a inch more.

"Harry what's taking so long, we're all waiting for you!" Ginny called as she ran into the locker room, stopping in surprise at the intimate moment she surely just broke. "Oh, sorry just be out in the pitch in a second."

Draco didn't dare move. He couldn't even if he'd wanted too. Despite the disruption, Harry was still so close. Draco knew that his lips were dry, he itched to lick them, but then he would touch Harry's lips. Would that be so bad? They hovered like that for only a second more before Harry pulled back, turning his back to the boy. He didn't see the look of disappointment cross his face.

"Ginny's right, take a moment and I'll meet you on the pitch." Harry took his leave not looking back. Draco just stood there in total shock. What has just happened? Shaking his head, riding himself of his errant thoughts, Draco pulled himself together, knowing that he would have time later to over think the situation, right now he had a quidditch team to help build. He no doubt would not stop blushing around Harry, but it was worth it to work out how the other boy was feeling. Taking one more deep breath, Draco built up whatever little courage he had and left the locker room for the pitch and the longest afternoon in his young life.


	6. Chapter 6

By the time Draco made it back out to the pitch, Harry was already in the air with Katie hovering beside him. They were running drills with the potential chasers. It seemed they were each working with three students. He noticed that Ginny was in Katie's group and wondered if that was to dissuade the idea of favoritism. Even Draco saw the potential in the girl and that was saying something because he was notoriously hard to please. Despite being hard to please, Harry seemed to make it hard for Draco to find anything displeasing about him. Draco had always known that he liked other boys. He had never really told anyone, but Blaise and Pansy, but he knew that a lot of the students at Hogwarts suspected as much. Blaise had always said that his careful grooming and impeccably well dressed nature screamed poofer. Draco always argued back that his father acted the same way, but then again he never was sure what his father was up to in those "meetings" with his "clients" and quite frankly he didn't want to know. But what was with Harry? Draco didn't know much about the boy when it came to sexual orientation and relationships. Sure he had suspected that he had been in a relationship with Ginny, but it seemed that he had been way off. If the way the two acted around each other meant anything then it showed that they were never together to begin with. Pushing all thoughts of the mysterious brunet aside, Draco mounted his broom and took to the sky, sidling up next to Katie.

"You take the next group and run through basic drills, okay?" Katie pointed out the next three students who were still on the ground waiting for their turn. They were all young and seemed a bit apprehensive about having to work with a Slytherin, especially one with such a colorful reputation as Draco's.

"Alright once Draco's group finishes their drills we can move on to three on three games. Until then I want everyone to repeat the drills if necessary." Harry's voice rang clear through the air and it made Draco's breath hitch. Had Harry's voice always been that powerful? How had it never had this affect on him before?

"Um- Mr. Malfoy should we run the drills?" The oldest of the group of three asked, her head held high to show her courage, though her voice quivered slightly.

"It's Draco, and yes, sorry." Draco smiled kindly to the trio surprising them and buying him enough time to store his thoughts away for further investigation later.

The drills went by quickly, it was obvious to Draco that two of the three of his students were not even steady on their broom and thus were not cut out for the team, but the third, the girl who spoke up to him, seemed at least competent. When his group was done, he flew to meet Katie and Harry in the center of the pitch while the nine other waited a few yards bellow.

"What do you think?" Harry asked as he looked over his group despondently. "I don't think we have any keepers in my group.

"Well Ginny stands out, of course, but we knew that." Katie nodded also looking dismal.

"The older girl in my group seems good." Draco nodded towards the girl in question who as flying circles and doing loops with Ginny.

"Demelza Robins, she's a third year. We should have Ginny's group face hers and see how they work against each other." Harry left them to gather the first two groups and Draco and Katie touched down with the third group. "Okay I am going to release the quaffle and I want you all to give it your best. For this exercise we will have Cormac and Ron play as keepers." Harry called as he threw the quaffle up and instantly Demelza dived for the ball.

Ginny raced after the third year and the two weaved around the other in what looked almost like a choreographed dance. They were flying too fast and with a higher skill level than the rest of their teams and soon they had lost them all together. Faking to the left, Demelza attempted to score through the right most hoop, but when the ball left her fingertips Ginny swiped it up as it passed her in the air, turning swiftly and taking off at breakneck speed to the opposite side of the pitch. Demelza was fast, but Ginny was craftier and she was too far ahead for the younger girl to catch up. When she reached the goal she took a sharp right before turning fast enough to give herself whiplash and hurling the ball in the the center hop. The students in the stands watching let out a great whoop as Ron dove in the wrong direction and Ginny made the first goal of the match.

Demelza didn't seem too put out however and allowed the two younger members of her team take turns passing the quaffle until they reached the goal. The youngest, a boy in his second year, passed the quaffle to her in the last moment and Cormac, who had not been prepared to put in much effort to block the second year, was caught off guard and the game was tied at one to one. Katie, Harry, and Draco all noticed his poor sportsmanship, and there was a silent agreement between them that no matter how horrible Ron might be, he would be better than a narcissistic show off.

The rest of the match followed in the same fashion. Ginny scored next, after also allowing the other two in her group time with the quaffle, and Demelza tied it up once again. After, Ginny regained control of the quaffle, though she tossed it to one of the boys in her group. The crowed sat on the edge of their seats as the boy raced through the air, taking his moment to shine as he made a particularly daring shot, making the final goal to end the match.

"What's that boy's name?" Draco asked as the group touched down. Harry was standing so close to him and Draco had to fight off the blush that was trying to make it's way up his neck. He wanted so badly to take the boys hand, or even lean into him to know that things between them were still okay.

"That's Dennis Creevey, his older brother is the one who was petrified through his camera four years ago. Thank Merlin he didn't pick up his brother's bad habit of following me around asking for my photo and an autograph." Harry smiled and brushed his hand gently on Draco's arm as if he had read the boys thoughts. "I think we should have Ginny, Demelza, and Dennis play against the last group of three, you want to gather them up Katie?"

The girl nodded and walked off to start the last game. When Harry was sure she was out of earshot he turned to Draco, standing close enough to whisper, but not too close to call too much attention to them. Harry couldn't help but smirk when he heard Draco's breath hitch when he moved closer.

"Everything is fine between us, at least I think it is. We can talk more though later, okay?" Harry leaned in to quickly brush his lips against Draco's cheek, pulling back just as quickly.

"Okay," was all Draco could manage. This time he knew that he was blushing and he could hardly fight it, much less form a lengthier response. Harry chuckled, he was beginning to really enjoy all of the small reactions he was getting from Draco. He couldn't help but think of all the ways he could tease and flirt with the boy to make the blush come back to his face or to make him lose his breath again.

For Draco the rest of the chaser tryouts went by in a blur. He vaguely registered that Ginny's team won three to zero, though he his thoughts were far from quidditch. He was too busy replaying the feeling of Harry's lips on his cheek in his mind over and over again. It had been so sudden that he had almost thought that he had imagined it, but the smile on Harry's face and the hint of lust in his eyes spoke volumes. Once or twice Blaise shot him a questioning glance, but Draco shrugged him off giving him a look that clearly read _we'll talk later_.

The beater tryouts went faster than the chasers. There where fewer people trying out and many were disqualified straight away because they were too young and or too small to even lift the bat and swing at the bludgers. After Harry angrily cleared off his over eager fans, the only two left were Dean Thomas and Seamus Finnigan.

"It's almost like having Fred and George back." Katie smiled, shaking her head at the two and their antics. The two were flying in complicated loops around each other, much in the way Fred and George had during practices when Wood couldn't quite get them under control. The two seemed to have a similar connection, as if they could read the other others mind and predict their movements. It was the kind of synchronization that the team needed.

"Good, we'll never be bored." Harry smirked. "Now we just need to test Cormac and Ron once more. Draco?" The blond jumped at hearing Harry call his name. Had his name always sound so sultry on those lips? How had he not noticed before?

"Yeah, sorry. What do you need?" Draco asked, proud that at least this time he kept the blush from rising up his collar and onto his pale cheeks. Maybe his eyes were playing tricks on him, but Harry seemed disappointed.

"We're going to test the keepers now. I want Katie to go against Cormac because she's the best we have and I really want to test him. I want you to go against Ron."

"But I'm not a chaser." Draco said confused.

"I know, but Ron's biggest problem is his anxiety. If we put him against his sister he'll be comfortable. I want him to be on edge, I want to push him. You're the best man to do that. I saw you run the drills earlier, I'm confident you'd make a pretty good chaser if you hadn't been such a good seeker." Draco colored at the compliment, but nodded.

"Okay, but if I make an arse of myself you owe me." Draco joked back.

"I promise I will make it up to you." With a wink, Harry mounted his broom and was off to set up the last match. With one great big sigh, Draco steeled himself for the challenge ahead of him. Part of him wanted to make an arse of himself on purpose so Harry would be forced to make it up to him some how. Shaking his head and the thoughts away, Draco mounted his broom and took off to the right side of the pitch where he could see Ron hovering in front of the goals.

"Okay I'm going to set a timer for fifteen minutes. I want Katie and Draco to try and score as many goals as they can, leaving at least a few seconds in between for your keeper to reset. Seamus and Dean will keep score, one on either end. Is that clear?" Harry's voice rang clear through the pitch and six voices sounded the affirmative. "Alright. Begin!"

Draco took a deep breath, at the sound and took up the first quaffle. He watched Ron carefully, beginning to dart quickly left and right in front of the goals before hurling the ball into the center hoop, a pass that Ron easily caught.

"Is that all you got?" Ron called in good nature and Draco glared, redoubling his efforts.

The rest of the fifteen minutes went about in a blur. Draco was able to score six goals in total, and while he wasn't proud of his performance, he was rather proud that Ron had done so well. The goals that he had been able to score happened in the first seven minutes, after that Ron had gotten his bearings and been able to block the rest of his attempts. While Draco was sure that Cormac had done better, Ron was a stronger player. Draco could tell that he had room for improvement and a willingness to work with the team, which would be very important not just to the team, but also to Harry who viewed his team like a family. Cormac just wanted his fifteen minutes of fame.

"Alright that was a really great tryout guys, I will have the results posted in the common room by the end of the week. If you want you can hit the showers down here, the locker rooms are open still, otherwise you can head up to dinner, I'm sure you're all famished."

The sun began to set as many of the students made their way to the showers. Katie left as well, promising to talk to Harry later about the final cut, though they were both pretty sure that it was obvious who had made the team. Harry was about to make an excuse to his friends and go off with Draco to talk, but he stopped when he saw a figure walking toward them from the castle.

"Mr. Malfoy. A word, please." Professor Snape said, his words not a question as he looked down his long nose at the blond.

"Can it wait, Sir? I would at least like to clean up." Draco tried to bide for time, but the displeasure in his Godfather's eyes made him flinch.

"No, it cannot." Snape's look was harsh and challenging. He sneered when he looked the boy up and down noticing his obviously Gryffindor uniform. "Already conforming I see."

Draco didn't respond, though he heard the feral growl that that left Harry's lips. He was sure that no one else had heard him, but the boy was so close behind him that Draco could hardly miss anything he said or did. Steeling himself for the worst, Draco gave a jerking nod to his friends before following behind his Professor and Godfather, less than pleased with the man's poor timing.

"Bloody hell that man is a menace." Ron muttered, shaking his head. "Poor bloke, I don't envy him. I'm going to hit the showers, I'll see you lot at dinner." Ron broke off from the group, Hermione and Blaise also took their leave for the castle, leaving Ginny and Harry behind.

"Do you want to talk about what I walked in on?" Ginny asked as soon as the others were out of earshot.

"Someone's a little eager." Harry joked, though he was glad that she had brought it up. While he obviously would have preferred to talk to Draco first, Ginny was an excellent listener. She always had the best advise, sort of how Harry always envisioned what his mum might have been like.

"Well you're eager to tell someone, so spill." Ginny smiled patiently, knowing that Harry would tell her.

"Well I don't know, I'd given him my uniform and turned to give him privacy. Which is weird because I wouldn't have done that around Ron or any of my other mates, but it was just different. And so when I turned around, I dunno he just looked _amazing_."

"And you want to shag his brains out." It was a statement that made all of the color rise to Harry's cheeks.

"Possibly." Harry averted his eyes from her strong gaze. Ginny had without a doubt gotten that look from Mrs. Weasley. Even though he'd done nothing wrong he felt compelled to tell the truth and otherwise felt guilty for not being completely honest.

"Well if you weren't so into him and him not so into you I would shag him." Harry's brain only processed the first part of her statement and all witty comebacks about Ginny wanting to shag Draco never came.

"He likes me?" Honestly Harry was a bit flabbergasted. It wasn't that he didn't think that he was likable, but knowing that Draco was actually interested in him and he hadn't just completely scared off the other boy was more than he could hope for. He might seem confident in himself this year, and for the most part he was, but Draco was the exception. Draco was always Harry's exception to everything.

"Honestly, love, you're not really that oblivious I hope." Ginny rolled her eyes. "He didn't move, didn't stop you, not once and I could almost see the tension between the both of you all day. Obviously he wants you."

"Well that makes things easier. I was going to talk to him before Snape showed up, I would have apologized, I thought I'd freaked him out."

"You can be so dense, I swear. Well this is good then, I'm sure between the two of us we will both be able to land our Slytherins before the Christmas Holidays." Ginny smirked, starting to talk toward the castle and Harry followed. It was starting to get dark and washing up would have to wait. They were most likely beyond late for dinner and it wasn't likely that with Ron around that there would be much of the good food by the time they made it up to the hall.

"Both of us?" Harry asked watching his best mate carefully, her words suddenly sinking in.

"Of course, Draco is yours and Blaise is going to be mine." Ginny said matter-of-factly with a very sly grin planted firmly on her face.

"Oh Ron is going to love that."

"I'd like to see him try to stop me." The two made quick work of storing their brooms and went to dinner, plots of flirting with their Slytherins forming as they went.

* * *

"What's wrong, Sev?" Draco asked as they made their way to the man's office.

"Not here, it's not safe." Draco looked up and down the hall and saw no one, but he took his Godfather's word and kept silent until they entered the office and it was properly warded.

"Okay, what is this about?" Draco asked while taking his usual seat across from the desk. He was annoyed at Severus' attitude, but he did his best to keep that out of his tone. Severus never acted like that unless he had reason to and he had always trusted the man's judgement in the past.

"What on Earth are you wearing, Draco?" Severus asked the boy he viewed as his son with disdain.

"I was practicing and I needed a uniform so I borrowed Harry's." Draco rolled his eyes.

"So it's _Harry_ now is it?" Severus watched him with a calculating stare, but Draco wasn't about to break under his gaze.

"Well that's his name, isn't it? I'm not sure what you have against him, but he really is a good person and he has been so nice to me and Blaise. He has done everything he can to made things easier for us and the Gryffindors are actually accepting us for all of his effort. You should be thankful he's protecting me."

"Is that so? Well he better really be keeping his eye out. I fear we are in more danger than preciously assumed." Severus sneered.

"Why? What's happened?" Draco demanded glad that the man was finally done with his pointless grudge and was finally going to tell him what was going on.

"I found Nott wondering the halls late last night. He said that there had been a meeting and that it was bad that I wasn't invited." The sneer was gone from his face and for the first time in a long time Draco saw the worry clearly written on the man's face. The expression made him squirm and the his stomach suddenly twist with anxiety.

"Is he a death eater?" Draco asked, shocked. He knew that many of the seventh years and a few of the sixth years talked about joining up, but from what he'd always seen, Voldemort didn't brand anyone until they were out of Hogwarts. That hadn't stopped him from trying to use and brand Draco, however. He shuttered at the memory.

"He wasn't marked, but I can't be sure he that he hasn't tried to join. Do you still have any contacts that you trust?"

"Maybe." Draco looked weary. He knew from experience that while Slytherin house protected their own, on the inside it was a house made on deceit, lies, and blackmail. There were very few people that he trusted, one of them being Blaise. "I think I can trust Pansy, but that's about it."

"Okay, I would send Ms Parkinson a letter, hopefully she can help us uncover what is going on."

"Are we safe, Sev?" Draco asked and instantly Severus was brought back to when Draco was a child and he would go to him when Lucius was being particularly harsh.

"We will be." Severus stood and came around the desk to pull his godson into a hug. He might not be a particularly affectionate man, but he loved the boy in his arms more than anything in the world and he would rather die than see him hurt.

"I'm scared." Draco whispered as a single tear rolled down his face.

"I know, it's okay." Severus pulled him closer, wishing that just by holding him he could protect Draco from everything.


	7. Chapter 7

The Great Hall was nearly empty when Harry and Ginny made it back to the castle. Only Blaise remained from the group that they normally sat with, though some of the younger years from the tryouts were sitting further down the table. Draco was no where to be seen and Harry had to assume that he was still with Snape. Harry sat across from Blaise and Ginny sat besides the Slytherin.

"That was some tryout, you and Bell know whose going to make the team?" Blaise started the conversation looking passively at Harry. The Slytherin knew something was up with Harry and Draco the tension between them during the game had been nearly visible and it was Blaise's duty as his best mate to figure out what was going on.

"We have a pretty good idea, yeah, but we can't let anyone know until we've gotten it approved by McGonnagal." Harry responded just as casually, though he could tell that Blaise was watching him closely as if he was fishing for an answer to an unasked question.

"Does she really get that involved?" This time Blaise was genuinely interested. Snape had always been keen on his house beating Gryffindor solely because of house rivalry, but he had never been active in the appointment of Quidditch team members. The idea of McGonnagal being so attentive was both humorous and a bit disconcerting.

"She loves Quidditch, but mostly she wants to see the roster to make sure the students we have chosen are on good academic standing as well as to ensure that there is no favoritism going on. Especially this year with only two of us remaining and most of the people trying out being friends of ours, she just wants to make sure that everyone who makes it on the team does so fairly."

"You Gryffindors and your fairness." Blaise scoffed, though he smiled in spite of himself.

"Watch it, you're practically a Gryffindor yourself." Ginny smirked, speaking for the first time since the boys had begun their light banter.

"I am not." Blaise looked rather put out, but Harry could still see the slight curve at the corner of his lips. "I am a Slytherin through and through."

"You make it sound like being a Gryffindor is a bad thing. Honestly I think that most Gryffindors I know have a bit of Slytherin in them." Ginny laughed and threw a side glance at Harry, who pretended not to know what she was talking about. He had only told his very closest friends that he had almost been put into the house of the snakes, so he was confident that Blaise would take her teasing entirely the wrong way.

"Oh really? And do you have any Slytherin in you?" Blaise asked Ginny, completely missing the knowing looks the two Gryffindors were throwing each other.

"Not as of yet, but I wouldn't mind it." Ginny grinned and Blaise nearly spit out his drink. Harry was used to her crude sense of humor, however, so he simply chuckled at her obvious tactics.

"I never thought that a Gryffindor like you would have such a mouth." Blaise raised his brow when he was done coughing.

"You have no idea what kind of mouth I have." Ginny winked this time, getting up from the table. "I'm going to clean up, Draco said he would help me with my ancient runes so I'll be by later." She left without looking back, knowing that Blaise would be following the sway of her hips.

"She's something else, huh?" Harry laughed when Blaise still seemed to be at a loss for words.

"Yeah, she's something." Blaise nodded, still in his own world. He had always thought that Ginny was beautiful and he knew that she was a notorious flirt, but somehow this felt different.

"I wouldn't worry about Ron, though, the older brothers are worse." Harry laughed when Blaise paled and his eyes refocused, staring at Harry more than a little concerned.

"And I don't have to worry about you?" The Slytherin looked skeptical.

"Nah. I love her death, but she has six older brothers and a father to drive her crazy about boys. She doesn't need me to add to that." Harry smiled kindly this time trying his best to be supportive though all he really wanted to do was laugh at the other boy's comical expression.

"Six?"

"Yeah, Mrs. Weasley just had to have a girl." Harry laughed as Blaise seemed to turn the number over again in his head, clearly realizing what he could possibly be getting himself into. At that thought, Blaise seemed to come back to his senses and he met Harry's eyes again.

"That reminds me, I need speak with you."

Harry was done eating at this point and he stood, waiting for Blaise to follow. He didn't respond at first, but enjoyed the silence, wondering if Blaise would get impatient and ask the question he had obviously been wanting to. They walked from the Great Hall and towards their dorms. Still Blaise said nothing and Harry was more than content to keep the silence going. It wasn't until they were far away from the main castle, where there were no other students, that Blaise spoke again.

"I wanted to talk to you about Draco."

"Are you sure you want to have that conversation out in the open? I don't think he would appreciate that very much." Harry asked, watching Blaise carefully. He knew that Blaise would have known better than to talk about personal matters surrounding Draco, not just because of how the blond would react, but because it wasn't safe.

"You really do care about him, don't you?" Blaise sounded surprised as they reached the portrait to his rooms. Harry waited for Blaise to let them in before responding.

"Is that really a question?" Harry took a seat by the fire, setting it with a flick of his wand.

"You're hiding something." It wasn't a question and Blaise stood by the fire leveling him with a stern gaze.

"And if I am?" It was an admission, but Harry knew better than to lie to a Slytherin, especially one that he wanted to trust him.

"I know that something is happening between you and Draco, and it's not that I disapprove, but I want to know what you're hiding. If you're hiding something that could hurt Draco, or if you're planning on hurting him-"

"I'm not planning on hurting anyone, especially not Draco." Harry cut in rolling his eyes. He understood, he really did. He was just as protective over Ginny and Hermione. He always assumed that Ron could to take care of himself especially since most of the time he was the one hurting others with his tactlessness. "And yes I am holding back information, but I'm not hiding anything. Draco knows, though, so you don't have to worry about that."

"And what makes you think that I'm going to believe you just because you say so?" Blaise countered, his eyes narrowed as he waited for Harry to slip up and say something that might be incriminating.

"Look, I understand that you are afraid for Draco and his safety, I get it, but if this is going to be a long conversation, I would rather go clean up first and be comfortable." Harry said, realizing that this was going to be one of those long, drawn out conversations that would end with very little actually happening, but would at least clear the air between the two.

"Alright, I suppose that's fair. You know where the washroom is."

Harry nodded and went up to the second level of their private living quarters to the washroom connected to Draco's room. He had used it many times before as he had a habit of falling asleep on the couch during long study sessions with both or either boy and various Gryffindors from their year who shared classes with them. When he entered the sizable room he was happy to find his spare toiletries right where he had left them as well as the spare set of clothes that he made sure that Dobby kept clean and stocked in the cupboard. If Harry hadn't known better he would say that it looked as if he as lived in the chambers, or was at least dating one of the men who did. Maybe this was what Blaise was getting at, the boy wondered as he stripped down and stepped into the hot water that he had spelled from the tap.

Harry made quick work of cleaning up, he didn't want to put the talk off anymore than he had already, but he had been honest when he said he wanted to at least be comfortable first. He knew that skirting around Blaise's questions would do him no good, but if he was going to have to go through being interrogated he might as well settle down and be comfortable for the next few hours. As he massaged his hands through his hair, thoughts of Draco returned to his mind. He hopped that he was okay, he knew that Snape would keep the boy safe, but if the look he was sporting earlier was anything to go by Draco wasn't making a social call. Something was seriously wrong; Harry could feel it. Pushing his darker thoughts aside, Harry finished up and spelled himself dry, changing into a old tee shirt and a pair of warm sweatpants. It was only the second week in October, but already the castle was feeling rather chilly and Harry was thankful that he had remembered to ask Dobby to purchase some muggle sweats for him over the summer. When Harry made it back to the common room, Blaise was sitting on the couch and Ginny was beside him. From what he could hear they were talking about classes.

"Hey sorry I took so long." Harry said, startling the pair. Ginny was leaning close to Blaise and the boy blushed deeply at being interrupted.

"It's okay, but I hope you don't mind that I'm invading on your conversation." Ginny smiled choosing to ignore Blaise's flustered reaction. She moved down so Harry could sit between them, and leaned on his arm with her head on his shoulder.

"No it's fine, I honestly should be telling you this too, Gin. I'm sorry I haven't had the time to sit down with you and talk since the last meeting." Harry was actually rather glad that Ginny was there, he did so hate repeating himself.

"Oh it's alright, I understand. Like I told you that day, I understand that you don't always want to talk, or that sometimes you are too busy to. I don't mind waiting so long as you don't forget me."

"I could never forget you, love." Harry laughed, kissing her forehead before continuing. Blaise instantly felt jealous at the ease that existed between the two. He was about to say something, but held his tongue. He knew that Harry and Ginny were not an item, it was obvious that Harry was interested in Draco and Ginny seemed to like him. He knew that the two of them were more like he and Draco, but it was hard to push the feeling of jealousy away.

"You were going to tell me about what you're hiding." Blaise ground his teeth, annoyed and Harry and Ginny had to do their best to keep from laughing.

"Yes I was, though I'm pretty sure both of you already suspect what I'm going to tell you. At the end of last year when we went to the Department of Mysteries something happened to my magic."

"The trauma unlocked your reserved magic and you came of age early." Ginny gasped. She had notice the spike in magic around him recently, but because he had a handle over most of it, she couldn't quite tell if it was just a little more magic or if he had actually come into his adult magic early.

"Yeah, I figured you'd guess since you've seen your brothers come of age."

"So that day when you saved Draco from Nott, I wasn't imagining that I saw more magic than you should have had floating around you?"

"You shouldn't have seen it at all. Normally I have very good control on who can and can't see it, but I messed up because I was concentrating on keeping Draco safe. That and like I told you, he already knows so I didn't feel the need hide it from him. I'm sure that Hermione knows something too, but from that distance she shouldn't have seen anything."

"So how much magic do you have?" Ginny asked excited while Blaise did his best to wrap his mind around the information that Harry was giving him.

"I can't show you here, I haven't practiced enough with it to feel safe letting all my walls down, but I can show you a small part. You're just going to have to use your imagination for the rest." Harry disentangled himself from Ginny and stood, making sure that there was a small bubble of space around him before he continued.

Closing his eyes, Harry imagined the walls that he had built to keep his magic in and slowly let the first one crumble. The air in the room started to get chilly and the fire that Harry had started was instantly put out by a sudden and unnatural gust of wind. When Harry was sure it was safe, he began to break down the second wall. This time he heard both Blaise and Ginny gasp as he was sure the pale glow of his magic became apparent and danced around him like a protective bubble. That would have to do, this had been the amount that he'd show Draco a month ago and while he had a better handle on it, he wasn't going to push his luck. Harry quickly rebuilt his walls so that he was no longer glowing and reset the fire with a flick of his wand.

"That was amazing." Ginny said wide eyed. She had known that he was more powerful, but not to what extent.

"That wasn't all of it, was it?" Blaise asked, almost afraid to hear the answer, though he would never admit it.

"No, that's what I have easily accessible to me and what I know I can control."

"Once you learn to control that, I don't think you're going to have any problems defeating Voldemort." Ginny said with an optimistic air to her voice.

"I'm not so much worried about him as I am about all of his followers and everyone who believes in what he stands for even if they aren't or can't be a death eater. When this war is over and he's gone, there are still all those people to deal with and we can't very well get rid of them cause then we would be just as bad as them."

"That was very insightful and mature." Gryffindor's portrait startled them from his spot above the fireplace. "Sorry to bother, but Professor Snape and Draco are about to return and I figured that this seemed like a conversation of a private nature and that you would want to know."

"Thank you Godric." Blaise spoke first, smiling at the man which surprised the two lions beside him.

"Of course Blaise. Also, Harry, your secrets are safe with me."

"And Salazar, you two are menaces together." Blaise rolled his eyes and the portrait laughed.

"Yes and I suppose Sal, no denying it. Well I best let the Professor in, he seems none to happy that I'm not there to let him in." The smiling portrait stepped out to the side and a few seconds later, the door began to open.

Draco walked into the common room first, though Severus was right behind him. To any passer by, it would seem that they were perfectly okay, both with their neutral masks set in place, but to the three occupants within, it was obvious that something wasn't right. Before anyone one had time to react, Harry disentangled himself from Ginny and was on his feet and in front of Draco. While the blond didn't seem to react, Harry saw the emotions flit through his gray eyes and before the Slytherin could protest, Harry had him in a tight embrace.

"Are you okay?" It was just a whisper, but Draco heard him clearly as if he had shouted it.

"No." Draco sagged into Harry's arms, the tears that he had held back since leaving Severus' office coming back full force. "I'm so scared."

"It's okay, it's okay to be scared. What happened, we can help." Harry drew circles on his back with one hand, doing his best to calm the blond.

"It has been brought to my attention that there is a possibility that one or more students have taken what was meant to be Draco's role as student spy for Voldemort." Snape answered for his shaking Godson, more than surprised with how close he seemed to be with Harry, though he was very glad to see that someone cared for Draco as much as he did, even if it was Potter.

"How can you be sure?" It was Blaise who asked, he had also stood and come to Draco's side, though he simply placed his hand on his brother's back, not wanting to intrude on the couple's moment.

"Draco can fill you in when he feels ready. I have to talk to Professor McGonnagal. I think it would be wise to move you and Draco into the Gryffindor classes, it would be safer."

"I can pick up their timetables in the morning, Sir. I have to report to Professor McGonnagal with the quidditch roster anyways." Harry offered, slowly pulling away from Draco, allowing Blaise to look over him and care for him as well.

"Very well, if you and Miss Weasley intend on staying over any longer I would suggest you both spend the night, it would not do to have either of you out past curfew."

"Of course Sir. And Sir, thank you." Harry smiled. He knew that Snape was doing this solely for Draco's benefit, but Harry couldn't help but feel like the man was also trying to keep him and the rest of the students safe as well.

"I haven't the slightest clue what you're referring to." Snape raised his brow in his usual fashion before turning and taking his leave, allowing the three to take care of Draco.

* * *

On the other side of the castle in the dungeons, two Slytherin students could be found conversing in one of abandoned classrooms. The boy was dressed in his pajamas, it was obvious that he had not planned on a night meeting and he was more than annoyed with being dragged out on such a cold night. The girl was still dressed in her school robes, she was pacing the room, taking the time to glare at her cohort every time she passed him.

"I still say that you should have held your tongue. If Snape finds out what we're doing before we've gotten control of the school this will all go under and he will not be happy with you."

"With me? I think you're forgetting that this is on you too." The boy bit back, not liking that he was receiving a lecture, especially from a girl.

"I'm not the one cornering Snape in the hallway, taunting him, _Nott_." The girl got right in his face this time. She might have been much shorter, but she made up for it in her attitude. "I told you to insure that he knew that he was in trouble with The Dark Lord, not to go and make him suspicious of you. If you're going to be useful then you're going to need to listen to me."

"Oh yeah? And what are you getting out of this deal? Your family wasn't ever part of the inner circle before, I can't imagine what you're gaining." Nott shot back, not willing to back down.

"Well your family certainly isn't on the top of his list either, so don't get cocky. Also who said I won't get anything from this. The Dark Lord might want Draco dead, but if I pull this off, I could convince him to accept Draco again and I will be able to gain not only power, but also the man that is rightfully mine."

"Is that all this is about?" Nott demanded exasperated, he knew that the girl was crazy, but following her was the only way to get himself closer to the inner circle, just where he wanted to be.

"It's about so much more than that." The girl rolled her eyes. She was sick and tired of dealing with _complete idiots_. "Just don't do anything stupid until I give you orders, are we clear?"

"Yes, ma'am." Nott answered, rolling his eyes. He would just have to put up with this chit and if he played his cards right, he would rise the ranks and take the place that both Snape and Malfoy Sr. vacated.

* * *

 

It was Friday morning and despite the evening he had previous, Draco was feeling great. Harry and Ginny had stayed the night, both sleeping in the common room and he had woken up to find a steaming cup of coffee waiting for him in their small kitchenette with a note from Harry letting him know that he had gone early to talk to Professor McGonnagal. The Gryffindor Quidditch Team roster would go up that afternoon and that night was the second DA meeting. Everything was looking up, and in the morning light, Draco's fears seemed to fade away. He was sitting in his normal seat at the Gryffindor table with Blaise across from him and Ginny besides him.

"Look I'm just saying, if you're going to be taking classes with us too you might as well change your robes. You're Gryffindors now." Seamus joked from Blaise's right and Dean nodded eagerly, laughing at the glare that both Slytherins gave them.

"I think that they should be proud of their house, I know we are of ours." Ginny laughed, sticking up for the two. "Anyways, there is something simply irresistible about a bad boy." This time she leaned on Draco's arm, pretending to flirt with him by over exaggerating her batting eyes.

"Got your eyes on a Slytherin then?" Dean cut in, all of those around laughing at the blush coloring Draco's face.

"Maybe I do." Ginny looked across the table winking at Blaise.

"If I didn't know better, I would say it looks like you're flirting with Draco." Harry joked as he came up to the table. "I've got your timetables, McGonnagal said that all of your professors will understand if you don't have work done today if your class wasn't meant to have it due until tomorrow." Harry handed the two the pieces of parchment over, taking a seat next to Blaise. "And the team list is up in the common room, make sure to check it out when you have your free period."

Conversation shifted to quidditch from there and then again to various classes and whatever other random topics that came to mind. Ron and Hermione joined them not long after Harry arrived and the Gryffindors and two Slytherins enjoyed a cheerful breakfast before their first period class, sixth year double Defense with Gryffindors and Ravenclaws.

Across the Great Hall a lone female Slytherin watched the Gryffindor table, her eyes narrowing at every time Ginny leaned on or touched Draco. _That bitch is going to pay._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just wanted to say thank you to all of you who have been reading and especially to those of you who have been leaving such awesome comments! I have 20 or so chapters of this written already and while I want to keep posting at the pretty steady rate that I have been I'm afraid that I might catch up to what I have written before too long. I might actually slow posts down to one a week while I figure out where this story is going and get the rest of it written, but fear not! There is still enough content to keep us going for a bit before we're in danger of slowing down!


	8. Chapter 8

"Today we're going to be going over how to cast a patronus." Professor Williams spoke from the front of the class. He began to walk up and down between the desks while his students took out their books and turned to the page noted on the front board.

As far as Harry was concerned, Professor Williams seemed competent in defense and he seemed like a natural teacher, but he couldn't seem to shake the fact that something was off about the man. It could just be that there was always something off about every defense professor since Harry started Hogwarts but this one in particular seemed odd. Harry had only known him for a month, but he could confidently say that something wasn't right.

"This lesson ought to be boring." Ron whispered from behind him and Hermione glared at him. All of the Gryffindor sixth years had learned about how to cast a patronus in the DA the year before and while very few succeeded in casting a full one, Harry was confident that they would do well in both the lecture and practical lessons.

"What can you tell me about a patronus? I know that I didn't assign this reading first so don't be afraid if you don't know much. Miss Granger?"

"The spell is expecto patronum. The caster must think of the happiest moment of their life to cast it properly and if done correctly it can ward off a dementor. If the witch or wizard is particularly powerful then it can ward of even a whole army of them. Also the spell takes the form of an animal which is unique to the caster and is called a patronus." Hermione answered, though she wasn't citing from the book verbatim like she would normally.

"Very good, five points to Gryffindor. But that's not all, what else can you tell me about this spell?"

"I'm not sure," Hermione faltered. She had read the chapter ahead of time as always, and since she had cast it before, so what was she missing?

"That's alright, not all of the answers that I'm looking for come from this chapter. What about you Mr. Boot?"

"Well you can send messages with your patronus, but you have to be pretty powerful and practice a lot to do that."

"Correct, five points to Ravenclaw. But these is still more, how about you Mr. Malfoy?"

"When you are in love with someone, some say with your soulmate, your patronus will change to match theirs. It is said that the submissive partner in the relationship is the one to change, though it is possible for someone to have theirs change even if they are not in a relationship with that person."

"Well said, Mr. Malfoy, but should your points go to Slytherin or to Gryffindor?" At this question many of the Gryffindors who had grown close to the pair of snakes living in the lion’s den laughed knowing that this was a constant battle with the two.

"Slytherin, please." Draco responded politely though he glared at his friends.

"Alright then, five points to Slytherin. Ah, Mr. Potter do you have more to add?" Harry's hand had gone up while his mates were laughing. He had seen Professor Williams go towards the front of the room again seemingly to move on with the lecture, but he knew that there was one more point that had been missed.

"Yes I once read that it was possible for a person's patronus to also emulate their parents."

"Correct, I believe your father's was a stag as well, was it not? Five points to Gryffindor. So as you can see-"

"But there's more Professor." Harry cut in further shocking his friends. "When I was doing research over the summer about meanings behind your patronus I also stumbled upon an interesting article saying that it is possible for the casters patronus to change if they become an animagus. Your patronus and animagus often are the same if you are particularly powerful, or if you have a spiritual connection to a particular animal that is strong enough."

"Interesting, I've not read that report before. Where did you happen upon it?" Professor Williams asked genuinely intrigued.

"The Transfiguration Monthly. I subscribed over the summer for some light reading." Harry responded, smirking at the dumbfounded looks his mates were giving him.

"It's like Body Snatchers or something." Seamus stage whispered and all of the students familiar with the muggle film laughed.

"Honestly Mate, it's like I don't know you anymore." Ron shook his head, while Hermione looked rather impressed.

"Well I'm pretty sure we've been over all of the points unless you have anything else to add Mr. Potter." Laughs sounded through the room again and Harry shook his head allowing Professor Williams to continue on with the planned lecture.

"Show off." Draco muttered from beside Harry. Blaise, who sat on the blond's other side, nodded his head to agree.

"Oh please you liked it." Harry winked to the blond then turned back to the front to pay attention.

"How many here have attempted to cast a patronus?" While Professor Williams might have been surprised that all, but Draco and Blaise, raised their hands, Harry wasn't. His eyes flitted across the room to see all of the DA members raising their hands high, feeling very proud that he had done something right last year. The rest of the Ravenclaws, Harry had to assume had tried on their own out of a thirst for knowledge and general curiosity. "Alright good keep your hands up. Now how many of you have at least been able to produce the silver mist."

At this many of of the Ravenclaws put their hands down. All of the members of the DA kept their hands up, however, which made Harry smile all the more. He knew that it was a very tough spell to cast and also that he had been teaching it to kids who were too young to learn it, but he had learned it at the tender age of thirteen so he had faith in his peers.

"Alright then, that's a surprising number of you. Now many of you have been able to cast a full patronus?" At this all the hands in the room went down besides Harry's and Hermione's. The only other member of the DA who had been able to produce a full patronus had been Cho, but of course she was a year above them and not at the lesson. "Really now? Of course I knew that you had, Mr. Potter, but Miss Granger as well? I'm impressed. Would you like to demonstrate the spell for us?" Hermione looked to Harry who simply smiled and nodded letting her know that he didn't mind, he knew that she enjoyed participating in class and as far as he was concerned his mini speech earlier had filled his 'speak-up-so-no-one-thinks-I'm-an-idiot' quota for at least the next few weeks. Hermione stood and went to the head of the class. Raising her wand in front of her, she took a deep breath, closing her eyes no doubt to call up her happiest memory.

"Expecto patronum." Hermione pronounced the spell perfectly, being precise with her wand movements. A beautiful silver otter soared from the tip, swimming around Hermione's head for almost a minute before disappearing in a haze.

"Wonderful, Miss Granger. Five points to Gryffindor. Now I don't expect all of you to be able to produce a full patronus right away, but I want to get you started on the theory behind it. I understand that this is a hard spell to master because it takes more than just your magical ability, you truly have to think of the most happy memory you have and channel that energy into the spell. This type of magic tends to be harder for younger witches and wizards because you must be in control of not just your magic, but also your emotions. Today we're going to go into more of the theory behind it as well as techniques you can use to help you. When we meet again next week, we will move onto the practical portion of the lesson. That will give you plenty of time to research and practice over the weekend."

Harry tuned out the rest of the lesson. He knew everything that he needed to know already and it seemed that Professor Williams understood that because while he seemed to notice that Harry's mind was elsewhere, he didn't call attention to him. He was thankful for that of course, and he began to let his mind wander. Ever since his talk with Blaise, he was starting to think of just what the thing between him and Draco was. If Harry had his own way, it would be the start to a relationship, a serious one at that. While he might have been slow to hitting puberty as well as to discovering his sexuality, the summer in complete seclusion had done wonders for him. He had all that time to think and to reevaluate what he thought he knew about himself and the world around. He had soon realized that while he liked women, he certainly preferred men.

But the most important thing to consider was how Draco felt. While Harry had a good idea and Ginny seemed to think that the boy also liked him, it didn't mean anything until Draco said the words himself. Harry turned to look to his side. Draco was taking notes diligently in a way that would make Hermione proud. His long elegant fingers gripped the feather with ease, achieving a grace that Harry could never pull off. They were truly opposites, day and night, but maybe that was what brought them together in the end. While Harry found these differences endearing, would Draco find them annoying?

Class was winding down when Harry felt a hand brush against his upper thigh. Startled from his thoughts, he looked down to see a pale hand slowly climbing up his leg. His eyes followed the arm up until he was looking into the smirking eyes of Draco. Instantly he colored, making sure to hold perfectly still. If he moved even an inch, Draco's hand would come in contact with his growing erection and while he certainly wouldn't be opposed to that happening, he certainly wasn't about to let it happen in the middle of class.

"Don't think you're in this alone, I give as much as I get." Draco whispered in Harry's ear as he stood up, making the motion look natural and unintended. A shiver went down Harry's spine at the loss of contact as Draco pulled away and gathered his things. He knew that flirting with a Slytherin could lead to something like this, but the thought thrilled him. He loved a good game of give and take or cat and mouse, though he wasn't sure who was cat in this situation. He openly watched as Draco walked to the front of the room to talk with Dean and Seamus, his hips swinging with every step.

"You sure you can handle that?" Blaise laughed, making Harry jump. He had forgotten that the boy had been sitting with them.

"I'm certainly going to try."

"Good, he deserves someone who can keep up with him." It wasn't how Harry would have wanted to hear Blaise give his blessing, but he supposed it would have to do. Taking a deep breath, Harry was glad that his robes were baggy enough to hide his front and he joined the rest of his friends on their way to their common room. This was their study break and since it was still so early in the year not many of them had a lot of homework.

"I didn't know you got Transfiguration Monthly Harry, I thought only professionals in the field could subscribe." Hermione pestered. They were walking side-by-side behind the rest of the group.

"Yes well last year when I was talking to Professor McGonnagal I mentioned that I might want to consider teaching. She told me that when you go into teaching you're supposed to have at least two subjects that you specialize in. Of course I told her that Defense would be my first choice, but I had no idea about the second. She suggested transfiguration and told me that she was friends with the editor and that she would ask for an exception for a subscription to be sent to me. If you want you can read the old editions, I have them all saved up in my trunk."

"Merlin, that would be fabulous." The duo entered the common room last, their conversation breaking off when they heard the loud cheers and cries of congratulations.

"I guess they've found the roster." Harry laughed as he watched his friends' excitement.

"Blimey Harry, we're going to be unstoppable!" Ron, the new keeper, cried from across the room where he was standing with Dean and Seamus, the team's newest beaters.

"Wait until Ginny sees she's made chaser." Draco smiled, walking up to the pair with Blaise not far behind."

"Her and Demelza deserve it. We really do have a strong team." Harry nodded, going into the many plays that they would have to run. Hermione simply rolled her eyes, moving off to find a quieter place to start on her homework. As happy as she was for her friends, she really had no interest in the sport.

The rest of the day went by quickly and by dinner all of the team members and the bench players knew about their spots on the team. The Gryffindor table was alive with conversation and good cheer. Most of the people who tried out at least made bench, though there were a few disgruntled students who didn't make the team at all. Calls of, "Next year mate!" and "You should practice with us and maybe you can move up to bench!" could be heard over the roar. They were truly a family and Harry was grateful that his house and his team were so close.

"I miss this when we go on holiday." Harry said to Hermione and the girl nodded in agreement.

"I never knew that everyone in the house was so close." Blaise observed from Harry's other side. "I know I would have looked down on it before, but I kind of like it."

"It's nice to feel looked after and cared about, especially when you're so far from home. Us older students look out for the younger ones, it's a bit like we're their secondary parents." Hermione said, looking down the table fondly at some of the first and second years who seemed to get swept up into the excitement of the start of yet another quidditch season though no one from their grade made the team.

"It is really nice." Draco agreed, but he was smiling directly at Harry making the other boy blush. "It's nice to feel at home here."

"Well I speak for everyone when I say I'm glad that you can consider this home." Ginny smiled, knowing that Draco was hardly paying attention to anyone, but Harry. "And as much as I adore seeing you two make love eyes across the table, I have an essay to write before tonight." The unspoken understanding that there was going to be a DA meeting that night was obvious and Ginny bid her goodbyes, even going so far as giving Draco a chaste kiss on the cheek while winking flirtatiously at Blaise and then Harry. "See you boys later."

* * *

The Room of Requirement was filled with mingling students. The meeting was set to start in a few minutes and most of the members were already there, though there were a few stragglers. Harry stood at the head of the room with Hermione, Draco, and Ginny, going over the plan for the night. On one side of the room Neville and Luna were positioning cushions all around for one of the practical lessons. On the other end, Ron and Blaise were erecting an invisible barrier just as Harry asked them to. Seamus and Dean were setting up a table in the middle between the two sections of the room with refreshments and sweets, an abundance of chocolate among them.

"Alright I think everyone is here." Harry called for attention when the last few students slipped in. "Today we're going to be running two lessons. For all of the students who have either not been here before, or to those who had trouble with this last year, we're going to have a recap of the simple shield spell. If you feel that you could benefit from this then please stand where the pillows are. Don't feel embarrassed if you think you need help with this spell, while it sounds simple, a well cast shield spell could really save you one day and I want to make sure that everyone here knows how to cast one." Harry waited for the students to move and get situated before he continued with his instructions. "Alright good. Now I know that Professor Williams assigned both the sixth and seventh years to practice the patronus charm. For those of you who need practice, and I'm sure that is most of you, you can move around the barrier to the other side and wait for further instructions.

"That leaves the rest of you, if you want to also practice the patronus then you can join the older students otherwise I want you to all supervise the shield practice. I will be moving between the two groups as well as Hermione. If anyone feels the need to stop and rest, take the time. We have refreshments set up for everyone, but the chocolate is mostly for the patronus lessons. I know we will be practicing sans dementors, but trust me you're going to want to stop for a sweet or two in between. If anyone has any questions don't hesitate to ask."

With a little scrambling and even more confusion, the two groups managed to split off and begin lessons at half past ten. Ginny and Luna were organizing the shield practice with Colin Creevey. They had split the other students into smaller groups, making sure to put at least one older student in with the rest. Even if they didn't know how to perform a proper shield spell they were still more apt to be able to control the more immature and eager kids. They did their best just jump between the groups and counted themselves lucky that the cushions were not needed as much as would have been assumed.

On the other side of the room, Hermione, Harry, and Cho were circling around their group of students, stopping to help those who seemed to have trouble with wand movements or else to force their peer to stop and take a breather in between attempts.

"How are you doing?" Harry asked Draco when he made his way over to the boy. Before he let the blond answer, he handed him a piece of chocolate and waited for him to finish it.

"Thanks. That really does help. I think I'm doing alright, I got the white mist to appear."

"Good, that's the first step. Are you thinking of your happiest memory though? That's the most important. What you're trying to do is create a protection of happy energy so you need to focus on something that would make you feel happy even when dementors are trying to suck all hope out of you."

"That's the problem, I don't have that many happy memories." Draco said, head down as if he was ashamed.

"Hey that's alright, I understand. The first time I did this, I had the hardest time thinking up of my happiest moment. At first I thought it might have been the day that Hagrid came to get me and told me I was a wizard. It took a few tries, but I finally landed on my first broom ride."

"I always thought you had a splendid childhood. I was actually rather jealous of you at first because of it." Draco said in awe. He watched Harry carefully, but the other boy just simply smiled.

"I didn't. It was awful at the Dursley's, but that's neither here nor there. How about you think of the happiest you have ever been and channel that energy into the spell." Draco had a feeling that Harry was hiding something about his past, but he let it go. Harry would tell him when he wanted to and he probably didn't want to have such an obviously personal conversation in the middle of a DA meeting.

"Okay well I was thinking of when I got my letter, but maybe I could try something else." Draco looked for Harry's approval and when he saw him nod, he grasped his wand tight and took a deep breath. " _Expecto patronum_!" A great silver light burst from the tip of his wand and a beautiful panther leapt from the light, running a few laps around Draco before disappearing into mist again.

All of the DA members stopped what they were doing to clap and cheer for Draco. He was the first to cast a full patronus of the night and this gave hope to the others who were still hard at work. Draco basked in the attention, he had never felt so loved by friends in his life. His father had never once told him that he was proud of him and while his mother tried to show her love, she was often scolded by Lucius not to coddle his son. Slytherin was in no way known for it's warm friendliness and while he loved Blaise and the boy was always there for him when he need him, they never really supported each other so openly because of their house and because of their upbringing. It would have never crossed Draco's mind to be this excited for another person's accomplishments, but here was a room of forty people cheering him on. It felt great.

While Draco was beaming and taking in all the positive attention, he failed to notice that Harry was watching him carefully as if he had just been handed a particularly difficult puzzle that he just wasn't sure how to go about solving. When the noise level died down and everyone went back to their own practicing, the smile returned to Harry's face, though their was a sparkle to his eyes that hadn't been there minutes before.

"Good job." Harry smiled, pulling Draco in for a hug. The blond hadn't expected this of course and let out a very undignified squeak. Harry laughed at the sound, allowing the boy to bury his blushing face into his neck. "I'm proud of you."

"Thank you." Draco whispered, his lips grazing over Harry's neck in the process. The Gryffindor sucked in a breath, his heartbeat running faster at the feel of the smooth lips on his skin. Draco, realizing what an effect he was having on the boy, decided to continue to talk with his lips just grazing his neck. "Are you alright Harry? I can feel your heart racing. Maybe you want to call the meeting early? I'm sure they would understand."

"You're going to be the death of me." Harry whispered, his eyes closing tight while he did his best to will his growing erection away. Of course he would have loved to cut the meeting short, but more important things had to be taken care of after the younger students went to bed and Draco be damned he was going to make sure they got done.

"At least it would be a happy death." Draco smirked.

"Is that a promise?"

"Yes." Draco pulled away to flash the brunet a winning smile.

"I'm going to hold you to that you know."

"I would expect nothing less."

As much as Harry enjoyed flirting with Draco and even the possibility of something more to happen, he had a meeting to run and he sent the distracting blond to the other side of the room to help Ginny. The rest of the night passed quickly. Ron was also able to produce a full patronus, a jack russell terrier, as well as Seamus who produced a fox.

"Everyone was able to cast a shield charm though a few still need help making it a strong one." Ginny reported while the rest of the members made their way to the refreshment table and started to help clean up.

"Good, we can do this again next week and then after we can all reconvene and start working on simple hexes. I want to have us running duels by mid November."

"That sounds reasonable enough, we should have a demonstration at that point. I think that the younger kids especially could benefit from a visual aid." Neville added.

"That's a good idea, I'll give it some thought and I'll figure out who the two duelists will be. I'm going to make a quick announcement since it's getting pretty late." Harry separated himself from the group and Ginny and Neville did their best to quiet the crowd. "First I wanted to say good job to everyone tonight. I didn't get a chance to work with all of you, but from what I've heard you all did very well. The next meeting time will go out on the coins. If you haven't received one yet please speak with Hermione. At this time I would like to ask a small group of students to wait behind. If you hear your name just grab one of the cushions and sit in the middle of the room, otherwise when I'm done calling names and you haven't been called you are free to go. Just remember to be quiet, stay in small groups, and go straight to your dorms, okay?

"I just need to speak to anyone who was a member of the DA last year, you know you you are, and also Draco and Blaise. This hopefully will not take long, but if you have to duck out early I do understand. I figure with tomorrow being Saturday then at least we don't have to get up early tomorrow. I know I had quidditch practice set for eleven in the morning, I will understand if you come to practice tried, just try to be on time. To the rest of you, good night, get back safe, and I'll see most of you in the dorms, the rest next week."

Harry waited for the rest of the students to clear out and for his friends to take their seats. Twenty-three students remained, sitting around him waiting for him to start. No one knew what this was about and many had the feeling that it certainly wasn't anything good if the look that was set on Harry's face was anything to go by.

"I asked you all to stay because I wanted to address a few matters that I think are very important and are currently being overlooked. First I want to say that the regular rules of the DA still apply. You are absolutely banned from repeating anything that you learn from this meeting and that includes to other DA members. At the end of this meeting I will be asking you to sign another agreement, except this time it will keep you from talking about this meeting entirely, we as a whole cannot afford to be turned on again. I want to make this perfectly clear so if anyone here does not feel comfortable making that commitment then you should leave now. If you want I or Hermione can remove this memory from you so you don't accidentally tell anyone that there is a group within the DA." Harry waited to see if anyone would stand up and leave, but when no one did, he signed in relief.

"We trust you, Harry, if this is that important than we all want to be here for you." Hermione smiled from her seat in the front and twenty-two other heads nodded their agreement.

"Good." Harry smiled, finding himself again thanking the powers that be that he was given such amazing friends. "The main matter at hand that I want to address is that, especially after what happened at the end of last year, it is impossible to pretend that we are not at war. I know that the rest of the DA is still too young to really understand that and that's why I am training them to protect themselves, but I realize now that I have to train those who are ready to fight. Essentially we will be a junior Order and I move for the motion that we refer to ourselves as the Order of the Phoenix, not because we are affiliated with them, but because in the very real situation where one of us is questioned for information we can truthfully say under veritaserum that we work for the Order. Another thing I want to address tonight is that I haven't been one hundred percent truthful with most of you."

Harry continued to tell them about how he came into his magic over the summer. As he suspected many were surprised, which only proved to him that he had done a good job hiding it. Ron was mad at first, but Harry managed to him talk down explaining that the three were never alone and thus he couldn't have told him without having more people know then he would have wanted. Hermione had admitted that she had suspected as much, which also seemed to divert Ron's anger from Harry to her because she didn't share her suspicions with him. They then began to talk about how this information could very well win the war, but that it was important that no one else found out. If Harry was to have the upper hand it would have to stay a surprise until the last moment. He would have to continue to act weak so that Voldemort would underestimate him.

"So the last thing that I wanted to tell you, and I promise that after this I will let you go," laughter could be heard around the room. It was nearing one in the morning and many of the kids were trying to stifle their yawns, "because I was training with my wandless magic over the summer I was able try out new spells because I couldn't be traced by the ministry through my wand. The reason why I seemed to know so much about the patronus today in class and subsequently about animagus' is because I became an illegal animagus." Harry nearly laughed at the collective gasp let out by everyone in the room.

"How did you manage to do that all on your own. That's really advanced magic!"

"I don't believe you, prove it!"

"Honestly, Potter, not hiding anything else?" The last person to speak was Blaise and Harry couldn't help but smirk."

"You asked if I was hiding anything. As far as I know, the act of hiding something means that you are concealing something from others. I wasn't concealing this from anyone, I simply just wasn't mentioning it."

"Very Slytherin of you." Blaise rolled his eyes, though he was satisfied with the answer.

"Well, what are you then?" Ginny demanded and chorus of "yeah" and "go on show us" could be heard until Harry finally gave in, raising his hand to silence everyone first and insure that he had all of their attention. Without any effort, Harry stepped forward, turning mid step into a beautiful black panther with green eyes and a scar just above his eyes.

Draco's eyes went wide. Sudden flashes of the conversation in Defense Against the Dark Arts ran through his mind. " _...it is possible for the casters patronus to change if they become an animagus_." " _When you are in love with someone, some say with your soulmate, your patronus will change to match theirs..._ " When Harry turned back, Draco was the first to speak.

"Did your patronus change when you became an animagus?" Draco waited with bated breath. He could see the calculating look in those green eyes. Harry had come to the same conclusion that he had, only he must have realized it hours before when Draco had first produced his own patronus.

"It did, actually. _Expecto patronum_." If anyone else in the room made the connection between his and Harry's patronus being the same, they didn't mention it, but there was no denying the fact that the graceful silver panther that was currently prowling around the room looked eerily similar to the one Draco had produced hours before. The fact that both of them looked just like Harry's patronus went without being said. The two boys locked eyes, one daring the other to speak first. "Well that's all I had to say for tonight, I want you all to sign the sheet on the table on the way out, you can see that I have already signed it, and then you can be on your way. Draco, stay back for a moment, will you?"


	9. Chapter 9

Harry and Draco waited for the rest of their peers to clear the room before speaking again. Blaise and Ginny both shot the two questioning looks, it seemed that they, along with Hermione and Luna, were able to put two and two together. Harry wasn't really surprised. Blaise and Ginny were constantly watching over them as of late and Hermione always picked up on every little detail, something that normally annoyed Harry, but he was grateful for it this time because at least she knew enough to leave them alone. Luna, however, just had this way of knowing what was going on despite her dreamy nature. When everyone left, Harry changed the room to a smaller, cozier one with a fireplace in the center and loveseat before it. He moved toward it, holding his hand out for Draco to follow him. They were silent as they situated themselves on the couch. Harry, with his back against the armrest and Draco resting against his chest. It was comfortable, like they had done this a million times before.

"I don't want to pressure you into anything." Harry said, breaking the silence. It had startled Draco, who was actually starting to fall asleep.

"What are you talking about?" He didn't turn around, but it was like he could feel the frown set on Harry's face.

"I don't know why your patronus changed, but I do know that even though I like you a lot, I'm not trying to pressure you into anything." Harry began to draw circles gently on his arm with his right hand.

"You really are daft, aren't you?" Draco asked turning this time to face the bewildered look on the brunet's face.

"Excuse me?"

"I like you too, I thought my patronus changing would have proven that." Draco rolled his eyes, leaning into plant a sold kiss on Harry's full lips. "You're not pressuring me into anything, I want this, whatever it is, just as much as you do."

Harry didn't have time to respond, Draco's lips were soft on his and his scent all but consumed him. Draco managed to move around completely, his body pressed flat against Harry's, loving the feeling of having the warm, taut body underneath him. Draco buried his hands into the messy brown locks, moaning when he felt Harry's hands slide down his sides, firmly grasping his arse. Draco growled, pressing himself into Harry allowing the boy to drag him ever closer. They had to pull away eventually for air and when they did, Draco couldn't help but notice that Harry's eyes were completely dilated from lust, a look that Draco was sure he mirrored.

"Have I convinced you yet?" Draco whispered huskily, making Harry shiver.

"No, not quite." Harry grinned back. "As much as I would love you to convince me more, it's nearing two in the morning. That and if you do all your convincing now, what fun are we going to have later?"

"You promise?" Draco asked, mirroring Harry's question from earlier in the night. He captured Harry in another kiss before he allowed him to respond.

"I promise." Harry nodded, sealing it with another long, slow kiss, letting his tongue snake out and flick along Draco's lips teasingly, pulling back as fast as it appeared.

"Good, now be a gentleman and walk me home." Draco rolled off the Gryffindor who moaned at the loss.

"Of course, my dear." Harry stood as well, pulling the blond in for another searing kiss.

"At this rate we're never going to make it back, love." Draco purred which only caused Harry to kiss him again.

It took them almost an hour to make it back to Draco's dorm. Every few minutes one of them would stop the other to push them up against the wall and steal another kiss, or three. When they finally made it to the portrait, Godric was smiling fondly through sleep heavy eyes.

"Good to see you boys finally come to your senses, now off you go Mr. Potter, I'm sure Draco can find his own way up to his room."

"Cock block." Harry muttered, making sure to kiss Draco once more before pulling back. "See you at practice? You need to run seeker drills with me until I can get McGonagall to agree to let you on the team."

"I wouldn't miss it for the world." Draco and Harry parted with one last kiss and Harry went back to his own dorm, a big stupid grin plastered on his face.

* * *

"Alright ladies, I know we had a late night, but that's no excuse, I'm running these drills too so I know you can! One more lap!" Harry's voice rang clear throughout the pitch and many of his teammates looked murderous.

"Oy, Mate! Are you trying to kill us?" Seamus complained from somewhere in the back of the pack. Harry ignored him and forged on, keeping an even pace while making sure to watch the rest of his team for stragglers.

"You might want to lighten up, Harry, if you want to have a team left." Katie tried to reason with the boy, pulling up beside him.

"If they can't keep up then they don't deserve to be here." Harry replied through gritted teeth. He was on edge and everyone could tell that something was bothering him, though no one dared asked what.

"Be that as it may, I rather enjoy our roster and I would like to see it stay this way." Harry's response was cut short when a lone blond figure came jogging up to them from the castle.

"Sorry I'm late, slept in and then Blaise chewed me out for being out so late. It's like he's my mum sometimes." Draco rolled his eyes falling in line with Harry.

"It's alright, I thought you weren't going to show." Harry visibly relaxed when the blond was by his side and Katie rolled his eyes.

"Merlin, you were killing us over that?" Katie fell back to allow them some privacy, though she did relay the message to the others as to why they were currently pushing themselves to the max during their first practice of the season.

"Have you really been making them run laps all this time?" Draco asked amused that his absence bothered Harry that much. They hadn't defined their relationship the night before, but it was safe to say that whatever it was, it was exclusive and their feelings were mutual.

"I've been making them run laps because if they think we're losing the house cup this year, they have another thing coming." Harry offered as explanation, though Draco saw straight through the lie.

"Whatever you say," Draco rolled his eyes, "but I think it would make more sense to get them up in the air, you have plays to run."

"And what about you? You're not getting out of the warm ups."

"I wouldn't dream of it." Draco grinned, taking off ahead to complete the warm up while Harry gathered the team in and got them up in the air.

Practice ran smoothly after Draco showed up. Harry left Katie to run the keeper and chaser plays while he worked with Seamus and Dean on beater drills, using Draco as the stand in seeker so he could teach the two some of the basic plays that Fred and George had come up with and perfected over the years. At half past one, Harry seemed satisfied with the team and ended practice, many of the team members look worn out from the grueling work out and Harry began to feel bad for overreacting and pushing them so hard.

"You better show up on time next week, Malfoy. I don't want to have to deal with another practice like that again." Dean joked, leading the guys on the team into the locker room, the girls had a joined locker room on the other side of the wall. They all stored their brooms in their respective lockers and made their way to the showers. A high pitched scream from the girls side alerted all of the guys and they ran to see what was wrong, wands drawn.

Harry was first on the scene and his eyes scanned the room quickly. The first thing he noticed was that Ginny was crying, Katie gently hugging the girl, trying to calm her. Demelza was staring in the direction of their lockers horrified. When Harry looked over in that direction he instantly understood why. Ginny's locker was thrown open, a clear message, "BACK OFF", was written in blood across the door and the wall.

Draco went straight to Ginny's side, doing his best to calm her. She was more startled than anything, but the Slytherin wanted to make sure that she was okay. Harry watched Draco take care of Ginny first before he made is way to the locker. A few quick spells let him know that the blood was not human and that there were no spells placed on or around the locker. He let out a sigh of relief at that. He had been worried that their might have been a spell placed on the door so that when it happened an unknown curse could have been placed on Ginny. Seamus and Dean left the locker room to get a teacher and the younger members left as well as to not over crowd Ginny, Draco, Harry, and Katie.

"Who could have done this?" Katie asked. She had disentangled herself from Ginny, allowing Draco to take over, and was standing beside Harry, eyeing the message cautiously. She had watched Harry do the advanced charms necessary to detect residue magic and while she trusted his wand work, she was still weary to get too close to the gruesome mess.

"I have no idea. I don't even know what they could be referring to. _Back off_. That's such a vague message. I wonder if they think that Gin is suppose to just know what they're talking about." Harry turned away from the locker, moving to the back of the room where Draco and Ginny were sitting on a bench, far enough away that they couldn't see the locker.

"Hey Gin, you okay?" Harry sat behind the girl, straddling the bench, pulling her into a hug from behind. He looked over his shoulder at Draco who smiled gently and nodded that he was okay.

"Yeah, it just startled me mostly. That and I sort of just flashed back to my first year." Harry understood what she meant, this was eerily reminiscent of Ginny writing the message to the Chamber of Secrets in her own blood. "But I'm fine now."

"Good." Nevertheless, Harry tightened his grip around her waist. "Do you have any idea who might have done this or what it is suppose to mean?"

"Honestly I have no idea. I keep to myself in most of my classes and Luna is really my only close friend in my year. Other than that I spend all of my time with you or other Gryffindors in your year. I can't imagine who I've pissed off, honest."

Seamus and Dean entered the room again, this time with Snape right behind them. The potions master looked over the three huddled on the bench first, but when Draco nodded to show that they were okay, he followed the two further into the room and to the locker. After performing the same spells that Harry had already done, Snape moved back to the bench. Draco and Ginny were standing up to leave, but Harry stayed seated, looking to Snape for answers.

"We'll be waiting right outside." Dean said, leading Seamus out to where the rest of the team was waiting.

"Did you test the locker for residue magic and get the same results?" Harry asked. It wasn't really a question, he already knew the answer and wasn't surprised when Snape simply nodded.

"I assume you've already asked Miss Weasley if she knew what the message meant?" Again it wasn't a question, though Harry nodded anyways. "I am going to speak with the Headmaster about it. Draco take Miss Weasley to your rooms. Potter follow me."

Silently, Harry stood to follow the man. He updated Katie on their way out and trusted that she would insure that everyone knew what was happening as well as escort them all back to the Gryffindor Tower. Snape placed a protective spell over the area to insure that they would be able to come back later and show Dumbledore the scene if he felt it was necessary. Without a single glance to make sure that Harry was following, Snape took off toward the castle. Harry kept up with his long strides with ease and grace, something that he realized was much easier post animagus transformation. Gossip traveled fast in Hogwarts and by the time they reached the gargoyles, many of the portraits were whispering about whether or not they believed Harry to be in trouble. Both dark haired wizards chose to ignore them, riding the lift up to the Headmaster's office and entering without knocking.

"Severus my boy! What seems to be the matter? Oh and Harry too, I hope you two haven't gone and gotten into a fight again." Dumbledore greeted them jovially, making Harry grit his teeth and Snape want to slap the man.

"It seems we've had an incident in the Gryffindor girls locker room. Someone threatened Miss Weasley with a note written in blood in her locker." It was possibly the most words that Harry had ever heard Severus speak when he wasn't angry. The true gravity of the situation was lost on the Headmaster.

"It wasn't human's blood I assume."

"Your assumption is correct."

"Then it was a harmless prank. You know as well as I do that students get testy this far away from home, especially in the beginning of the year. As long as Miss Weasley is alright, then report the incident to Professor McGonagall and then let it rest."

"That's all you have to say? This is a serious matter!" Harry cried more than a little put out. It was only Snape's hand on the small of his back that kept him from leaping at the man. While he might have gotten his emotions under control for the most part, Ginny was his sister and this man who was supposed to be protecting all of his students didn't seem to care that she could be in real danger.

"Potter, Dumbledore is correct, I can report this to McGonagall myself and we will meet you at Draco's to check on Miss Weasley." Harry would have protested, but the look Snape was giving him clearly said that he too was just as aggravated with the old man. They left the office together, Snape moving toward the direction of the Head of Gryffindor house's private quarters. Harry turned in the opposite direction to await the man's return and to get the answers to his many questions.

When Harry entered Draco and Blaise's common room he was instantly bombarded by questions. Along with Draco and Ginny, Blaise, Hermione and the rest of the sixth year Gryffindor boys sat waiting for him. It took a few minutes to get everyone to stop talking over each other and when Harry was able to get a seat on the armrest of Draco's chair, he told them what was going on. As he expected everyone was outraged at Dumbledore's response and many almost doubted what Harry told him. He had to reassure Hermione a few times that he had in fact been there and that yes, he was sure it was Dumbledore that he had spoken to. Harry had been convinced for a while now that the man was not of a fit state of mind to run the school, though he had kept those thoughts to himself. Not however, he wasn't the only one questioning the old man and his motives.

"We'll just have to wait for Sev to get back." Draco said when the room lapsed into silence. "I know how he acts, especially with Gryffindors, but he takes his job very seriously and I'm not surprised that he's upset. He would want to insure the safety of all of his students, especially one that I consider a good friend." Blaise nodded from the armrest on Draco's other side, agreeing with the blond.

"Would he really though? He's never put his neck out for us before." Seamus asked, bitterness obvious in his voice.

"Now that's not true." Hermione said, shooting the Irishman a look.

"Hermione's right. He's more than saved my life on many occasions, he might not be obvious about it, but he really does look out for all of us." Harry placed his hand on Draco's back, leaning into the blond from his perch. If anyone in the room was surprised by their close interactions, no one said anything, which Harry was grateful for. It seemed he was more transparent than he had thought because Hermione simply smiled at the two, while Ron just rolled his eyes. Dean and Seamus didn't seem to even notice, but by the way the two were practically sitting on each other and the fact that one of their beds had been empty since the start of term, Harry was confident in his suspicion that the two of them were also a couple and that they held no judgement about the pair in front of them. Neville just looked at them knowingly, it seemed that his time spent with Luna made her ability to know everything rub off on him and he simply smiled, not wanting to bring any more attention to the two. The comfortable silence ended when Godric walked into his portrait above the fireplace.

"Professor Snape requires entry."

"I don't see why you never ask to let Harry in, but you won't let in a teacher." Blaise addressed the portrait incredulously.

"Well Harry setup the password and the rooms, It wouldn't do to lock him out." Godric winked cheekily in response and Harry couldn't help but laugh.

"Severus is always welcome here, Godric, now let him in before he grows impatient."

"I don't see where you get off giving orders to our portrait." Blaise scoffed though his tone held no malice. The two were bantering over Draco's head since they still flanked him on either side and the blond in the middle simply rolled his eyes.

"Well when said portrait seems to like him better, I can't see how we could stop him." Draco laughed when Harry stuck his tongue out childishly.

"Ever popular I see." Snape's eyes swept over everyone in the room first before his eyes landed on Harry, the slight sneer in his voice evident.

"Actually we're all here for Ginny, Sir." Neville responded rather boldly which made Snape brow raise at the boy.

"I see, well I need to speak with Miss Weasley and Mr. Potter without an audience."

"Oh I wouldn't bother, honestly. Anything you tell them we're going to hear about latter." This time it was Seamus who spoke up and Snape could feel a growing headache starting at his temples.

"Be that as it may, this is of the utmost importance." Snape tried to reason with the lot of teens, though he knew it would be useless.

"Of course, which is why nothing you say will leave this room, but if you send us out now I can guaranty you that Ginny will at least tell me because she is my sister and I don't know, I just might forget and tell the rest of the house as I am apt to do." Ron said with a fake innocent look on his face. This made all of the rest of the students in the room laugh and Snape knew that he was completely screwed.

"Fine." Snape ground his teeth and Draco almost felt bad for his godfather, but he was enjoying himself too much to help him. Neville stood from his chair and with some rearranging, was able to sit on the couch. Seamus moved to the couch arm and Hermione sat on Ron's lap. When everyone was situated and Draco called for tea, because really he was a Malfoy and it was against every fiber of his being to not serve something to guests, Snape began to speak.

"First of all, I have told Professor McGonagall about what happened and she went down herself to check out the scene. Unfortunately whoever committed this crime did so without using any magic so we could not figure it out by those means. The knife that was used was left at the scene and while we tried to lift fingerprints it seems that either the culprit knew better than to leave any or they were using gloves. The blood came from a rabbit, most likely found in the Forbidden Forest.

"We cannot currently bring anyone in and we have decided not to alert the Ministry, but of course we will being continuing an investigation and Professor McGonagall and I feel that it would be best that Miss Weasley and Draco stay together since you are essentially providing protection detail for him already you can watch her as well. I will report to Potter if I discover anything, I expect you to report back to me."

"Of course, Sir. What are we going to about the Headmaster, though? He's not going to want us investigating anything, he doesn't seem to think that there is a problem." Harry asked. He didn't agree with Dumbledore at all and while he had no problems going against the man, he wasn't sure about Snape. Dumbledore seemed to really trust the man and Harry wondered if he in turn trusted the Headmaster just as much. The look that the potions master was giving them, however, told a completely different story. He seemed to be trying to formulate a proper answer.

"I think that what the Headmaster doesn't know won't hurt him." Snape said slowly. Every eye in the room widened at his words.

"Can you do that? You're a teacher. You're not supposed to break rules." Ron said slowly and many of the others agreed.

"I was a student once, too." Snape's smirk was answer enough and every person in the room suddenly had more respect for the man. "Keep them safe, Potter. I'm sure you'll be hearing from me soon." Snape took his leave then, presumably to try and get a lead on the person who threatened Ginny.

"I might be hard to watch Gin when we're all in a different year." Dean said when Snape left.

"We could always walk her to her classes and have Luna stick with her when she can." Hermione supplied, it wasn't a great solution, but it would have to work.

"Well we're heading back now, are you coming?" Seamus asked. He stood and helped Dean up from the couch, his hands holding on longer than necessary.

"I think I'm going to stay the night, if Blaise and Draco don't mind." Ginny looked to the two boys and they nodded their consent.

"I think I'll stay too." Harry said, standing to see the rest of them out. Before Ron left, however, he pulled Harry aside.

"Look, I'm not sure what's going on between you and Draco, but I support you, both of you."

"Thank you, that really means a lot." Harry pulled Ron into a tight hug.

"Just be safe okay?" Ron smiled, pulling away and looking back to the scene that Blaise, Draco, and Ginny made, sitting around together laughing over something one of them said. "And look after Gin for me."

"You got it, mate." Harry smiled back, shutting the portrait door after Ron left.

"So where are we going to put you two?" Blaise asked when Harry rejoined them. Harry pulled Draco from his seat and sat down first, pulling the blond back down again so he sat in his lap. Blaise and Ginny sat on the couch doing what Harry could only categorize as snuggling.

"Gin can have the couch and I can transfigure the armchair into a cot." Harry offered and Draco scoffed. He turned in Harry's lap to face him with an incredulous look on his face.

"Do you really think I'm going to let you sleep alone?" Harry smirked and leaned up to capture the boy in a gentle kiss.

"Well he's taken care of, but you're not going to leave me all alone are you?" Ginny smiled, leaning in closer to Blaise who looked both bewildered and bit like he wasn't quite sure what he was getting himself into.

"Gin, maybe you should stay on the couch tonight." Harry smirked and Draco couldn't help but laugh at his friend. "I think you're moving a bit too fast for Blaise." The boy in question began to splutter in protest, but Ginny merely pouted at Harry's words.

"Oh alright, just this time." She stood and pulled Blaise up as well, easily transfiguring the couch into a large queen bed. "I'm just going to freshen up and then I think I'm off to bed." She kissed Blaise gently on the cheek before heading off to the bathroom.

"What in the world is that girl playing at?" Blaise asked no one in particular.

"I don't know mate, but I think you're going to have to figure this one out on your own." Draco stood, clapping his best mate on the back before pulling Harry up with him. "We're going to turn in too, behave Mate."

"Tell that to her."

Harry followed Draco up to his room, not quite sure what was in store for him, but he was more than willing to see it through. He was surprised when he walked into the room, he had been expecting Draco's room to look like the Gryffindor dorms, but then again this was meant to be for the Head of House so it shouldn't have surprised him to see that they were actually quite homey and well decorated. A king sized four poster sat in the middle of the room and was covered in black silk sheets. The wall was the made of the same grey stone, but large tapestries hung over most of the room in the traditional Slytherin colors. Harry raised his brow at that, but Draco merely shrugged and smirked. There was a door to the right which stood open revealing a very large walk in closet. When Harry saw that he couldn't help but snort. The rest of the room was pretty standard and Harry found his eyes returning to the large four poster where Draco was lying back leisurely, shirt completely unbuttoned. Harry's mouth went dry at the sight.

"You make an amazing sight, love, but maybe we're taking this too fast." Harry moved to the bed, and got on, straddling Draco at the hips. He leaned down to capture the blond in a kiss.

"You don't seem to be complaining now." Draco grinned, pulling him closer.

"I know, but I want to do this right." Harry pulled back enough to look him in the eyes. "I really care about you. I want to really get to know you, the real you. I want it all Draco and to do that we should slow down, really do this right." Harry expected a response, but instead he looked down and found a single tear falling down Draco's face.

"I really don't deserve you." Overcome with love for the boy beneath him, Harry leaned down and kissed the stray tear away.

"But you do and if I have to spend the rest of my life convincing you that you are I will."

"You don't mean that." Draco tried to brush the Gryffindor away, but Harry brought his hand up to his face, making his grey eyes meet his green eyes.

"I do." Harry leaned down again and captured Draco's lips in another kiss. It was slow and gentle. Harry made sure to put all of his feelings into it. If Draco wouldn't listen to words then maybe he could be persuaded by action. Harry tenderly coaxed open his lover's mouth with his tongue and Draco moaned at the contact. Harry's hand moved down the blond's sides, his body moving to lie flat on top of him. When the need for air became too great, Harry pulled back smiling down at Draco. "Do you believe me now?"

"I think I might be beginning to."

"Good." Harry rolled off the blond, making sure to pull him closer. His hands roamed up and down Draco's naked torso, feeling the ridges of his quidditch toned body.

"If you keep that up, we might have to throw the whole slow thing right out the window." Draco said, moaning in between words when Harry would massage a little rougher over certain spots.

"Well when you say it that way." Harry's mouth met Draco's neck faster than the blond could blink and he threw his head back in pleasure, allowing Harry better access to the pale skin. Harry continued down the path of his neck to the back of his shoulders, making sure to nip and lick along the way. He wasn't going to go much further, he meant what he said about going slow, but the noises that Draco was making were simply intoxicating. Plus, slow was such a relative term.

Draco was completely lost to the sensations sparking across his body. He had never really had the opportunity to experiment with other guys, much less have a relationship with one, so he was quite new to everything that had to do with physical intimacy that wasn't hugging or cuddling with Blaise. While the self conscious part of him wished he wasn't so naive, the part of him currently being worshiped by Harry's mouth was more than glad that he had waited so long to share such an intimate first moment with someone as special as Harry.

As much has Harry enjoyed Draco's reactions, he knew that he had to stop. He pulled his head back, grinning when Draco moaned at the lost. Nuzzling his lover's neck, Harry inhaled his scent, committing the smell of fresh market apples to his memory. Draco stretched out his aching limbs, pressing back into Harry in the process.

"It's late, love, go to sleep and we will have plenty more time to get to know each other in the morning." With a flick of his wrist, Harry dimmed the candles in the room and drew the curtains around the bed. Draco shivered at the feel of the raw magic that surrounded him. He drifted into sleep easier than he had in a long time, knowing without a doubt that he was safe in Harry's arms.


	10. Chapter 10

It was the beginning of November and there was an infectious energy running around Hogwarts. The next day was the first Saturday of the month which meant that the first quidditch match of the season was just around the corner. As usual, the match was set between Slytherin and Gryffindor which meant that the rival houses were even more rowdy than usual. Harry had been working his team harder than ever and while they would complain about it, with the day so close, they felt very grateful that they were so prepared.

Since the locker incident, nothing else had happened to Ginny and Snape, try as he might, couldn't kick up any dust on the matter. While they continued to keep close surveillance on both her and Draco, nothing had happened. The incident had almost all been forgotten.

"You're rooting for us tomorrow, right?" Seamus asked Draco and Blaise over dinner that night. The usual suspects sat around near the middle of the long table. Over the past month, Draco and Blaise became a constant in the lives of Harry and all of his friends. Especially with the DA meetings every week, the two had ample opportunity to get to know their peers and they both felt more at home in the past month then they had in the past five years in Slytherin.

"Of course, who else would I root for?" Draco asked and Harry smiled.

"Good answer, love." While everyone in their house and in the DA knew about their relationship they had agreed to keep it low key. With the possibility of there being one or more spies for Voldemort in the school, it was too dangerous to come out to the school. It had been Draco's worry for his mother, who they assumed to still be under house arrest and possibly in grave danger, that really made them hide their relationship. Draco couldn't bare to think that his actions might cause his Mum more harm.

"Well, what about you Blaise?" Ginny challenged, watching him carefully for his answer. "Are you going to be rooting for Gryffindor tomorrow or are you still a snake through and through?"

"Is that even a question?" The boy smirked at Ginny who blushed, though all those who knew her well saw straight through the act. "I may still be a snake, but that doesn't mean I can't root for a different team."

"I don't know, I would think you'd be rooting for your house." Dean shot back from his seat on Seamus other side.

"I could care less about house unity, I'd put my money on the best and that is obviously you." This time Ginny really did blush and everyone around her laughed with an exception to Ron who seemed to be trying to keep his food down at his sister's obvious flirting.

"But would you really?" Seamus asked pulling out his little black book, opening it to a fresh page. Dean leaned over his boyfriend, skimming the back of the last page. If his hand grazed his lover's thigh in the process no one seemed to notice or care.

"They really are like the twins." Hermione rolled her eyes, but made no other comment. Though she might be a prefect, she often turned the other eye when it came to her boys. "Minus the dating obviously."

"You know sometimes I did wonder-" Ron trailed off shuddering, which only caused more laughter.

"Alright we have a big day tomorrow, everyone make sure to get lots of sleep, we're going to need it." Harry said standing, communicating with his eyes to Draco that he would be waiting in what he now considered their dorm. Since the first night he had stayed over, he had slowly moved his things in and hadn't slept alone throughout the whole process. Ginny was also spending a lot more time around the private rooms as well and while she still slept on the couch, it was only a matter of time before she and Blaise officially became an item.

"So does that mean you're going to be heading to bed early?" Dean questioned. All of Harry's friend looked to him for his response.

"That all depends-" Harry trailed off, looking to his blond lover doing his best not to leer.

"Not a chance, love." Draco whispered, though their closest friends could still hear them. A flitter of giggles ran through the small group which was beginning to draw unwanted attention. "Go, I'll meet up with you."

Harry made his way to his new rooms with ease. Doing his best to keep in the shadows, he moved with a cat like grace. He had made it all the way up by the tower when he heard a small noise to his left that alerted him that someone was waiting there. Before he could turn around he felt the point of a wand in between his shoulder blades. He tried to turn his head, but a firm hand at the back of his head kept him in place. If he really wanted to, he could overpower the person both physically and magically. It was obvious that it was a woman, the thin fingers tangled in his hair were soft and slender. As for the magical abilities of the witch, Harry could feel them faintly without seeking them out, but he still could tell that he was more powerful.

"Don't move." Harry was right, it was a girl. The whisper was low and he couldn't place where he had heard it before.

"What do you want?" Harry's voice was calm and steady. He had to allow her to think that she had the upper hand if he wanted to surprise her enough to get free without causing a scene or actually hurting the girl.

"Be careful, Harry Potter." He felt her shift and her hand was in his robe pocket. She pulled back just as fast and when Harry whipped around, she was gone. Carefully he fished into his pocket only to pull out a parchment. Confused, he flipped it over twice before giving up and putting it back into his pocket. There was nothing on it as far as he could tell, but the hallway wasn't the place to look for secret meanings on a suspicious parchment.

* * *

When Draco, Blaise, and Ginny returned to their rooms, they found Harry sitting alone by the fire, glaring at a scrap of parchment that lay on the table before him. His outer robes and sweater had long been forgotten, thrown haphazardly over the nearest chair back. His crisp white shirt was unbuttoned and completely open, the sleeves rolled to the elbows. His shoes where discarded by the corner of the love seat that he was sitting on. His wand was laying on the table next to the parchment, long forgotten. One of Harry's hands was cutting through his messy locks, his other holding a whisky glass which was only a quarter full. He didn't look up when they entered, which the three took as a very bad sign.

"Are you alright, love?" Draco asked, taking a seat next to his boyfriend, taking the glass from his hand.

"What's wrong?" Ginny took the seat on his other side, her hand gently pulling on his arm, massaging the hand that was running through his hair.

"It's that blasted parchment! I can't figure it out!" Harry pulled his hand from Ginny to point at the object in question. Blaise picked it up, looking it over a few times before shrugging and putting it back down.

"Maybe you should take your own advice and go to bed early." Blaise suggested watching him curiously.

"It was placed in my pocket by an unknown female. She got me from behind, whispered 'be careful, Harry Potter' into my ear and was gone." This seemed to pique everyone's interest and all eyes fell on the parchment again. "I ran as many spells on it as I could think of, but nothing. Why would someone go through all this trouble just to give me a slip of blank parchment."

"Have you tried writing on it?" Ginny asked, flashbacks of his second year ran through his mind and Harry shook his head. "What? If this is the same person, they seem to be fascinated with the classics and by classics I mean our lives here at Hogwarts."

"I don't know. You might be onto something." Harry summoned a quill and an inkwell, dipping the tip and writing his name neatly at the top of the scrap. They all waited with baited breath, but when nothing happened the four sighed in frustration.

"Are you sure you've tried everything?" Draco asked gently. He could tell that his lover was more than a little frustrated by the whole situation and he wasn't about to try and test him.

"Yeah, but you can have a go at it, maybe I missed something." Harry picked up the offending object gingerly, handing it to the blond. The second Draco's fingers touched the parchment, words formed on the page. Harry gasped in surprise and Ginny and Blaise soon crowded around the blond to have a look. Harry's scribble was still there, but now a clear message could be read that certainly hadn't been there before.

"D, Please be careful. There is something going on in the Slytherin dorms, I don't think that there is anyone I can trust any more. I know Nott is involved, but there is a second person and I'm having a hard time figuring out who. I just know that something big is going to happen. P" Draco read the message out loud even though he knew the others could read it just fine over his shoulder.

"It was Pansy." Harry said confirming everyone's thoughts. "Doesn't this seem really suspicious? She just happens to be waiting for someone to go back to our rooms and warns us that something is about to happen? We made sure that only those in the locker room at the time find out about it, we hid it from even our own friends and now she just comes out of nowhere and warns us? It just seems too coincidental."

"Do you think she was the one who left the note on my locker?" Ginny asked, but Draco shook his head.

"This is all too sentimental for Pans, she is more subtle and direct, just look at how she got this note to Harry. Also she obviously charmed it so that only my touch would activate the ink. I really don't believe the locker was her work. If I know her as well as I think I do, however, then she would know that something was going on. She has always been more nosey than was good for her and could normally dig up dirt on just about anyone and anything without being caught. This could be a good thing, with her on the inside, we might figure out just what's going on."

"But can we trust her? She said she might know who the second person is, but how is she going to tell us?" Ginny pointed out. This time it was Blaise who spoke.

"She knows about Nott, which isn't surprising because he is an idiot, but someone smarter has to be pulling the strings. She said that she knew there was another person, but not who they might be. We do also have to consider that she could be working with them, this could be a trap, they're right Dray, we can't trust her blindly."

"I really don't think so." Draco protested again. "I've known her since we were children, I would know a trap set by her any day. I know it seems fishy, but I honestly don't think that Pansy is involved."

"If you're sure, love, but where does that put us? What do we do from here?" Harry asked sitting back and pulling Draco down on him. He agreed with the others, but he didn't want to upset his lover. However, that didn't mean that he trusted the girl.

"Honestly? We're going to have to wait for them to make their move. I'll tell Sev about this in the morning." Draco said looking more than a little upset, but they knew that he was right. There was nothing that they could do but wait for something more to happen.

"Okay. I wish there was more we could do though. Get sleep, okay? Tomorrow is going to be a busy day." Harry stood taking Draco with him. They both leaned down to kiss Ginny goodnight on the cheek, bade Blaise goodnight as well, and made their way to bed.

* * *

The Quidditch Pitch was packed with students decked out in the Gryffindor and Slytherin house colors. The teacher's' box was full and Justin Finch-Fletchly sat comfortably in the announcer's box. Seven nervous Gryffindors stood at the south entrance waiting for the signal from Madame Hootch, their Slytherin counterparts just across the pitch. The group's attention was grabbed by a head of blond hair making its way toward them from the middle of the pitch, near the spectator's exit.

"I talked to Snape, he doesn't think it was Pans either, but he said he would keep an eye out for you and Ginny especially. I'll be with Hermione, Luna, and Neville so don't worry about me. Just keep your focus in the game, okay?" Draco smiled reassuringly at both his lover and the girl he was starting to consider to be like a sister.

"We will, just make sure to cheer loud enough for us to hear you." Ginny said grinning. Draco took his leave and the team huddled up to hear the customary pep talk.

"I know you have all been training hard for this and I have the utmost faith in all of you, but don't let that go to your head. We will only win if we earn it so I want to see all of you go out there and play your hardest!" The rest of the the team let out a cheer and they broke apart just in time for Harry to be called onto the field. He walked forward with confidence to meet the referee in the middle and shook Urquhart's hand. His team walked out behind him and they all took to their air, awaiting the signal.

When the quaffle shot up in the air Ginny dashed after it. Immediately the chasers fell into formation and one of the easier plays began. Harry took his time to scan the crowd, his eyes landing on each member of his team then to the people in the stands. It was too early in the match to consider finding the snitch, it wasn't anywhere to be seen, and his team's safety was always his top priority.

"Demelza Robins scores the first goal of the season! That was a fantastic play by Gryffindor's chasers, but a bit basic. They're going to have to pull out all the stops if they want to outsmart Slytherin this game!" Justin yelled above the roaring cheers from the Gryffindor side.

Harry couldn't help but smirk at the commentary. He knew his team would put on quite the show and he wasn't worried about finding the snitch before the other seeker. He hadn't been kidding when he had told Draco that the blond was his only real competition out of the three opposing seekers and he knew that he would be able to fly circles around the new guy. With that in mind, Harry took off higher into the sky. He would not be able to keep an eye on his teammates up there, but the faster he caught the snitch the faster they'd be back in the Gryffindor Tower where it would be undoubtedly safer.

"That's the third score for Gryffindor! That brings them 30-0! This might not be much of a game after all!"

Harry barely heard the score, he was so focused on finding the snitch. A quick glance told him what he had already assumed, the other seeker was clueless and seemed to be flying in fast circles around the pitch. He wasn't patient, but he was fast, Harry would have to use that to his advantage. It wasn't until the score was Gryffindor 70-20 that Harry first saw the elusive golden ball with wings. It seemed that Harper saw it too, however, and while he was was closer, Harry knew that he could fly faster if he just paced himself. Taking off at breakneck speed, Harry barreled past the smaller boy, taking off after the prize, tuning out everything around him. He expected Harper to try to out fly him in the end, which was why Harry was flying so fast, though not the fastest that he was capable of. He knew that Harper was right beside him, but that didn't matter. Picking up speed, Harry gripped his broom tight and lay his body out so he was almost flat across the wood. He was going much faster than Harper at this rate and he knew he would be able to stop safety if he could just catch the damn thing. As his hand reached out he barely heard the collective gasp from the stands before his fingers curled around the snitch. He came to a near instant stop to complete silence. What had happened? Hadn't he just ended the game? Why was the entire pitch dead silent? Harry looked down to the floor of the pitch and his blood ran cold. There, lying on her back like a fallen angel, was Ginny. This time Harry took off even faster, not caring that he was barely giving himself enough time or space to come to a safe landing. He saw a few figures making their way to girl and all Harry wanted was to get there before them Madame Pomfrey was the first to reach Ginny, but Harry was a close second. She immediately started running diagnostic spells.

"What happened?" Harry demanded when Katie touched down next to him nearly a full minute later. The girl looked more than a little upset as well and while Harry knew he should give her time to collect herself, he needed answers. He had gotten too caught up in the game, protecting Ginny was his responsibility and he completely blew it.

"Something was wrong with her broom, she just lost control and fell. It was almost like what happened to you in your first year." Katie looked downright frightened at the dark look that crossed Harry's face, she knew what he was thinking, this could be the work of the student who decorated Ginny's locker.

"She'll be fine, but she will need to stay overnight. Mr. Potter kindly conjure a stretcher and meet me in the infirmary."  Madame Pomfrey brought their attention back to Ginny. She had completed the diagnostic spells. While Harry wanted to ask where she was going, he watched as she made her way to Ginny's broom first, levitating it and encasing it in a shield charm like Snape had done with the locker room and then went towards the teacher's seats. Harry did just as she asked, making sure to only allow Ron, Hermione, Draco, and Blaise to follow him into the Hospital Wing, the rest of the team understood and they returned to the Tower to await more news. When Madame Pomfrey finally returned, she wasn't alone.

"How is she doing, Harry?" Professor Dumbledore asked in a cheery tone. Instantly the boy's eyes darkened.

"Still passed out, Sir. I'm not a mediwizard so I don't know more." It was hard for him to keep the bitterness out of his voice and the Headmaster hardly seemed surprised by the whole situation. Instead he was silently surveying the situation with the air of someone who was insuring that everything had gone to plan.

"Oh I'm sure you're plenty capable of caring for her, I know you're powerful enough."  Dumbledore replied, still smiling. Madame Pomfrey had moved to Ginny's side to care for her at this point so Harry had no qualms in leaving her in favor of staring down the Headmaster.

"What are you implying, Sir? That her injuries aren't extensive so a mere child could heal them? Because they look pretty severe to me." Harry challenged, moving closer to the older man, not about to back down.

"Oh, but you're not a child, my boy." Harry knew then that it was pointless to hide his power from the old man. What he didn't know however was whether or not he really was just getting old or if something more sinister was going on.

"I was under the impression that sixteen was still under aged, Sir." This time it was Severus who spoke, walking from the shadowy corner that he had been lurking in. His sudden presence startled everyone but Harry and Dumbledore. Snape came to stand by Harry's side and looked to his employer for an answer.

"Yes, but I'm sure you can agree that Mr. Potter has always been an exception."

"Then why don't you treat me like an adult? Tell me what's actually going on?" Harry demanded. Madame Pomfrey looked like she was about to cut in, but a swift hard look from Snape silenced her. He wanted to hear the old man's answer as well.

"In good time, my boy. Don't you worry about things you cannot control. Now I'm sure you are all fine here for now, Poppy see to it that they return to their rooms when visiting hours are over, I will be sure to inform Miss Weasley's parents that she was involved in a flying accident. Oh and congratulations on your win Mr. Potter." Before anyone could respond the old man was out the door. Draco, knowing Harry well enough by this point, was by his lover's side in an instant to hold him back from running after him.

"Poppy, may Mr. Potter and I borrow your office? The others will remain here until we are done regardless of the time." Snape's voice was tight and strained, it was clear he was also less than happy with Dumbledore.

"Of course, Severus, I'm sure if this lot can stay out of trouble it will be no problem." The worry lines on the older witch's face where so clear that it only just occurred to Harry just how old she must be and just how much she must have seen in all her years with the school. "Don't you worry about Miss Weasley, Mr. Potter, she will be alright after some good rest and a few healing spells."

Harry felt very relieved to hear the comforting words from the mediwitch. She had patched him up a great number of times over the years and she had never lied to him before. If she said that Ginny was going to be okay, he believed that she would be okay. Silently, Harry followed the potion's master into the back office. The air between them was tense, but for the first time since they had met, the tension was not due to whatever contempt they might have felt for each other, but for their shared contempt of another person. It was a mild improvement in Harry's mind. Snape stepped into the room first and took a seat behind the desk, Harry followed and took the open seat across. Snape locked the door with a flick of his wand and put up a silencing spell. Had it been anyone else, Harry would have felt vulnerable and would have gone on high alert, but for some reason Snape had slowly become one of the few adults in the school that he completely trusted.

"Dumbledore can no longer be trusted." It was a statement, not a question, one that Harry was more than a bit relieved to hear the older man say.

"I was afraid so, but it looks like I can't hide anything from him anyways." Harry replied, upset that despite how hard he tried, he could hide from anyone, but him.

"We could always use that to our advantage." Snape said plainly and his admission to being on Harry's side surprised the boy.

"Our advantage?"

"Well you must know that I don't really work for Voldemort, and recently I've been trying to keep my distance from Dumbledore as well, he's been an old puppet master for too long and now he thinks he's God. You however are clearly capable, if your actions this year are anything to go by."

"Are you paying me a compliment?" In retrospect, Harry could see why antagonizing the man in front of him might not be a smart idea, but in the moment he couldn't help but question him. This was not normal Snape behavior.

"I am merely stating things as I see them." It was the closest that Harry would get and he let it rest.

"So what do we do now? We can't really run a secret operation in the school without him knowing." Harry said trying to reason with the man. While he knew that it was important to separate from the manipulative man, he wasn't sure how that would be possible.

"Word is that you have a secret organization already."

"Well yes, but everyone knows about that." Harry rolled his eyes at the obviousness of the matter and Snape glared at him.

"Well if I were you, then I would start a smaller group within that one of people that you would trust with your life. We can work from there." Harry couldn't tell Snape that he had already done that, it was in the contract. He would have to get approval from all of the members first.

"I will see what I can do." It was the most that he could say without getting in trouble with the spells that he had set in place himself.

"You can trust me, Potter." Snape said, his eyes boring into Harry's. They were by no means soft, but they were the softest that he had ever seen. It reassured him.

"I know, Sir. You can trust me too." Snape ended the spells warding the room and stood. He opened the door for Harry and let him walk out first. It was a small peace offering, but Harry would take it for what it was.

"Thank you for allowing us your space, I will see to it that they make it to their dorms okay." Snape said while Harry made his way back to Ginny's bedside. The girl was still asleep, but her bruises were healed and the dirt was washed off her face and out of her hair.

"Can we just stay a bit more, I want to check on Ginny?" Harry asked from the bed, Draco was sitting in his lap, Ron and Hermione mirroring them from the other side of the bed, and Blaise was sitting by Ginny's feet, his hand holding hers.

"I'll be back in an hour." Snape nodded, and taking his leave.

"Was he just smiling?" Ron asked confused, Hermione giggling in his lap.

"He does do that occasionally." Draco laughed, snuggling into Harry's arms. "What were you two talking about? You were locked up in there for a while."

"Later, but don't worry, it was very civilized." Harry assured, pressing a gentle kiss on his cheek.

The rest of the visit was rather silent. Ginny still hadn't woken up, but Madame Pomfrey assured them that she had given her some dreamless sleep, and that she wasn't expected to wake up until morning. At one point Ron excused himself to send a letter, but didn't explain whom to. The rest assumed that it was to his parents to tell them what had really happened. Just as he promised, Snape returned to escort them back to Draco's dorm after an hour had passed. Ron and Hermione had already asked them if they could stay on the couch that night, after the day that they had, they preferred to be close to those that they trusted.

Naturally, when the group made their way into their room, they were surprised to find Fred and George sitting by the fire waiting for them.

"What are you doing here?" Draco asked shocked, he had been the first to walk in and wasn't sure how he felt about the twins. They hadn't had any interactions since he and Blaise had taken an official stand with the light. "And more importantly how did you get in here?"

"Oh that would be my fault." Harry smiled sheepishly. "Though I didn't know that they would be here either. I just told Godric to let in all the Weasleys. I figured he would know that I meant the ones that still went to school here, but I guess not."

"Well that's great and all, and it's not that we mind you being here, but what are you doing here exactly?" Blaise asked. It seemed that since his blooming relationship with Ginny, he had been very sure to keep on all of the redhead's good sides.

"We got a letter from our dear little brother." Fred, or possibly George, teased from their spot on the loveseat.

"It said something about Ginny being hurt, but to come here first." The other followed up.

"I did, we all need to talk about Dumbledore." Ron said seriously, taking a seat and pulling Hermione down on his lap with him.

"I am surprised that you kept your cool." Harry commented, taking his normal seat. Blaise and Draco sat on the armrests on either side of him.

"I've taken a leaf out of your book, it seems to be working." Ron smirked at the green-eyed boy across from him. "But something really needs to be done about him. This was not a simple mistake."

"We saw it from the crowd, Snape was even trying to use an anti-curse just like he had when you were knocked off your broom. I'm telling you that someone is doing this intentionally, but I still don't think it's Pansy." Draco chimed in.

"Well who could it be?" Harry asked a silent room. And that was it really, they had no clue and they were all stuck until whomever it was messed up and let something about them go.

"Well we figured with us here,"

"we could help the process along."

"You know it's quite annoying when you finish each other's sentences like that." Blaise rolled his eyes which only made the two laugh.

"Okay honestly, enough with the nonsense, what are we going to do about all of this?" Hermione cut in trying to bring the focus back to the problem at hand. "We can't just sit aside while the man that is supposed to protect us sits back and turns a blind eye! We're so lucky that Gin didn't get seriously injured!"

"I have a possible solution, but we would have to talk about it in the next DA meeting." Harry said looking at those inducted into the DA Order meaningfully so they would understand just why he couldn't talk about it then.

"Alright then, we'll just come back." Fred said shrugging and standing up.

"We still have our coins, so just let us know." George followed his twin toward the door.

"Good night and behave." Fred winked before leaving with his twin.

"They're ones to talk about behaving." Hermione rolled her eyes, though she couldn't help, but smile. "Now, what happened with Snape? It has to do with the Order, doesn't it?"

"He actually asked me to start up a smaller group within the DA, he thinks it will be necessary to completely cut Dumbledore out. The old man is up to something and it's got Snape worried."

"It must be serious if Snape wants to defy the Headmaster." Hermione said wide-eyed.

"We'll just have to wait for the meeting to see if everyone will want him to know about the group."

"Aren't we doing the duel next week?" Draco asked absentmindedly.

"Oh, sure and then there is that, if nothing else it will be an interesting meeting." Harry rolled his eyes. He still had to choose the two people to duel and while he had thought that he had the two planned, he wasn't sure if Ginny would be up to it now. All of the stress from the day was really starting to get to him and as much as he loved his friends, he just wanted to get away and relax for a while.

"I'm sure it will be fine, love." Draco smiled, faking a yawn for Harry's benefit. "I'm knackered, do you want to head to bed early?"

"Sure, that sounds good, good night guys, we'll go check on Ginny in the morning?" Harry and Draco left for bed to choruses of 'yes' and 'good night'. It wasn't until they got into their room and closed the door that Harry left out a great sigh, allowing the weight of the day to fall off his shoulders.

"Lay on the bed love, let me take care of you." Draco purred in his ear, leading him to the bed. Along the way, he helped him out of his quidditch jersey. He had long since taken off his gear, but he was still dressed in his quidditch slacks. Harry let Draco guide him to lie on his stomach. The blond dug around in the bedside table drawer first before crawling up on the bed and straddling Harry's hips. He made sure to pour a generous amount of the massage oil on Harry's strong back and began to rub the tension out of it. "Everything will be alright, love." Draco whispered, making sure to kiss lines up and down his neck every time he leaned in to work on his shoulders.

"If you keep doing that then I completely believe you." Harry moaned, loving the feel Draco's hands all over his body. "Don't stop." He moaned before he realized he had even said anything.

"That can be arraigned." Draco laughed, his hands moving further down to work his lower back, his fingers dipping into the pronounced devil's horns that Draco loved. "Tell me, what do you want me to do? I'm at your command."

"Well for starters you could work a little lower." Harry lifted his hips unseating Draco who just chuckled and rolled his eyes. He helped the boy out of the rest of his clothes, making sure to strip down himself, before joining Harry on the bed again.

"Turn around." Draco whispered in the brunet's ear, nipping at it gently. When he moved on his back, Draco instantly kissed him on the lips catching Harry by surprise.

Harry felt like his whole body was on fire. He was so relaxed from Draco's magical fingers and the feel of the blond's naked body pressed tightly against his side made Harry see stars. In the month that the two had been together, they had really only made out before and while Harry had seen the blond with just a towel on he had never actually been so closed to him naked. Draco pulled away from the kiss and started making a trail down Harry's neck again, his hands roaming over his sides, snaking up and down his ribs, pinching and playing with each of his erect nipples in the process. Harry moaned loudly, having half the mind to cast a weak silencing spell. He hardly cared if the others heard, but he knew Draco would be embarrassed in the morning if he didn't. His mind was taken away from all thoughts, but the blond when he felt his tongue moving lower. Harry was sure he would cum just at the sight of Draco making his way down his body, stopping just before his painfully erect cock. Draco looked up from his spot kneeling in between Harry's legs as if to ask permission. All words had failed Harry at this point and it was all the Gryffindor could do, but moan approvingly and thrust his hips up in a lame attempt to get Draco to move closer and _just touch him_.

With a smirk trademark of any good Slytherin, Draco moved down ever so slowly, savoring the way Harry's eyes rolled back in his head in anticipation. He blew on the head teasingly and Harry let out a strangled sob. It was clear that it was taking all of his self control not to force the blond to take him in his mouth. If Draco hadn't been so turned on himself, he would have been impressed and even touched at the lengths in which Harry would respect him and trust him. Feeling bad for his lover, Draco opened his mouth, lowering his lips to the head of Harry's cock, sulking the drop of pre-cum off before moving down the rest of the shaft, experimentally swirling his tongue along the way. Harry's hand instantly found its way into Draco's hair and Draco began to pump up and down, moaning at the sinful noises that he and Harry were making. The vibration from Draco's moans only proved to drive Harry even crazier and he knew that he wouldn't last much longer. Even though he knew that Draco had never done this before, he found it very hard to believe. Where ever the blond lacked in skill he made up for in enthusiasm and the absolutely dirty noises that his mouth was making was enough to drive Harry to the edge. Draco, knowing that Harry was close, redoubled his efforts, wrapping his hand around the shaft and pumping in time with his mouth, his free hand moving up to tweak Harry's nipple. The extra sensations were enough to push Harry to the edge and with a muffled cry, Harry came harder than he had in his whole life, screaming Draco's name. Draco did his best to drink up all of Harry's juices, but a little dribbled down his chin and when crawled up to his side, Harry kissed him firmly on the lips and licked his chin clean.

"That was fucking amazing." Harry took a moment to collect himself, but he knew that Draco was still hard and it wasn't fair to leave his lover in such a state, especially when he had just given him the most mind blowing orgasm of his life. He continued to kiss the blond, his eyes closed as he lazily drew patterns on Draco's back and arms. Pulling back, Harry lay back on his own, gathering his strength enough to return the favor. When he opened his eyes, Harry knew that if it were possible he would have come again. While Harry was still coming down off of his post orgasm high, Draco had somehow maneuvered himself without the Gryffindor knowing, and was now sitting up against the headboard, quickly stroking his own cock.

"God Harry, do you know how sexy you are?" The blond moaned, batting Harry's hand away when he tried to help. "No I told you, tonight is all about you, just watch."

"God you're amazing, Draco." Harry moaned, realizing that Draco really wasn't going to let him do anything that night, and so he sat back to watch the show. Draco was already so close to his orgasm and he knew that he wouldn't be able to put on a great show, but by the look of heat in Harry's eyes, the boy wouldn't mind. Using his own pre-cum, Draco lubed up his fingers on his left hand, and while keeping up the same fast pace on his cock, he began to circle his fingers around his tight hole. Harry found his hand on his own hardening cock before he realized he had done it. The sight of Draco playing with himself was too much and Harry began to stroke himself in time with him. Seeing this only pushed Draco further. This wasn't his first time fingering himself and when he slipped the first finger Harry moaned and leaned forward. Draco didn't even bother to brush Harry aside this time and Harry replaced his hand with the one Draco was masturbating with, moving so that their cocks were pressed close and he could jerk them off at the same time. The feel of skin on skin was too much for Draco. He could feel the pressure building and his balls tightening up.

"Harry, so close." Draco moaned and Harry picked up the pace.

" _Come for me, Draco_." Harry hissed in parseltongue. At hearing the ancient language, Draco threw his head back and came screaming Harry's name like a mantra. When the thick, hot cum landed on Harry the boy felt his second orgasm of the night build and with two more strokes, he went over the edge, gracelessly falling on the blond when he was done. It took a while for them to catch their breaths, but when they did, Harry moved off his lover and cast a cleaning spell. "I didn't know you got so turned on by parseltongue, I might have to use it more often." Draco moaned at the sound, cuddling closer to Harry, burying his face in his shoulder.

"How could I not be? No more tonight, though, love unless you're trying to kill me." Draco sighed, moving until he was absolutely comfortable, happy that Harry seemed to be just as comfortable and also didn't seem to want to move anymore than he did.

"There's always the morning." Harry laughed, spelling the candles out. "Night, Draco."

"Night, Harry." Draco felt the gentle kiss on his head before drifting off into a peaceful sleep.


	11. Chapter 11

Sunday morning found the usual suspects surrounding Ginny's bed. She was awake this time and seemed to be going fine, though she had complained of still being sore and stiff. It was just past nine and Madame Pomfrey had been kind enough to allow them to order in breakfast. The group as a whole had been very insistent to staying by Ginny's side, and she saw no harm in allowing them to all stay. There weren't any other students that would be disturbed by their presence and she trusted that Harry would call for her if Ginny needed anything. The mediwitch retreated into her office to give them some privacy, glad that she had a moment to relax.

"I'm so glad you're okay, Gin. Fred and George were furious when they found out that Dumbledore just wrote the whole thing off."

"Did you tell Mum and Dad too?" The younger girl asked, worried.

"I sent them a letter early this morning, if we're lucky they'll come here first to see you and we won't miss the show." Ron grinned and Hermione rolled her eyes.

"See the show?" Blaise questioned, Draco looking just as confused.

"Well you see, Ginny gets her temper and her quick hexing skills from her mother." Harry supplied, laughing at the glare set on the girl's face. "So what Ron means is maybe we'll get to see Mrs. Weasley chew Dumbledore out."

"Now that would be quite the sight." Draco laughed, winking at Ginny to calm her down. The girl relaxed, rolling her eyes at her brother and his antics, but she rested back into the pillows, closing her eyes.

"Are you getting tired Gin? We'll leave if you want to rest." Hermione offered noticing that not all the color had returned to her face yet and she was looking rather worn out.

"No, don't go. I'm fine, just sore like I said, but Madame Pomfrey said there was nothing she could do for it, it was just the way that I fell I guess."

"Well is there anything we can do?" Blaise asked and Ginny smiled. Without answering she moved over in the cot, extending her hand to Blaise. The boy let her take his hand and she pulled him up onto the cot with her. When he was settled beside her, she pulled his arm around her shoulder and rested her head on his chest.

"Better." Was her only response and everyone in the room couldn't help, but grin.

"It is good to see you that you're doing well." Professor Dumbledore walked into the Hospital Wing unannounced.

"With no help from you." Harry whispered under his breath and Draco snorted.

"I'm surprised that the Headmaster has time to come visit a student who got in a simple accident."  Ron said bitterly and Hermione nudged him gently to stop him from creating a scene.

Before Dumbledore was able to respond, the Hospital Wing doors flew open from a sudden burst of magic. All of the teens, minus Ginny, were on their feet with their wands drawn in seconds. If the situation had been different, Harry would have been very proud of how quickly his friends had reacted. It seemed that the training sessions in the DA were helping. A furious Molly Weasley stormed in with her wand drawn, Arthur not far behind her. Her hair was floating with all the raw magic that she was giving off and Arthur made no move to stop her. When Harry saw who it is was, he backed down, holstering his wand and taking his seat again. The others followed suit, Blaise settling down with Ginny.

"I'm so glad that you're okay my dear, and I will explain everything later, but first I have some questions that I need answered." Molly advanced toward the Headmaster, magic crackling in her eyes. "Tell me why I wasn't informed that someone in this school attempted to kill my daughter?"

Dumbledore was backed up against the wall now, his hands up, though he hadn't drawn his wand. Molly had her wand pointed against his neck and Arthur stood to the side, a very dark look in his eye. Harry had never before been more proud to call the Weasleys his adopted family. He had always known that they would protect their own and he had certainly heard that in the first war, Molly had been a force to be reckoned with, but seeing it first hand was something to behold. Draco, Blaise, and Hermione seemed to be just as surprised, but Ginny and Ron looked rather unfazed.

"Ginny is fine, attempt to kill is so harsh. She merely fell off her broom." Dumbledore tried to smooth talk his way out of the situation, but the Weasley matriarch was having none of it.

"Albus, I know that my daughter is a fantastic flier, furthermore I know that she would not have simply fallen off her broom. That and Ron made it explicitly clear that the broom moved on its own accord, throwing her off. That's a jinx if I've ever heard of one." Arthur spoke in a low, deadly calm voice that sent chills down Harry's spine. He had always known never to cross Mrs. Weasley, but he wondered if maybe it was Mr. Weasley that the Headmaster should be more fearful of.

"Jinx? Listen to yourself, Arthur who would want to hurt Ginny? Unless that is you're hiding something from me." The dark look in the older wizard’s eyes made all of those in the room start to grow suspicious.

"And just what might that be?" A voice from the door startled nearly everyone, but Harry who had felt more than seen another person enter the room. The level of raw magic hanging in the balance was nearly tangible and he was surprised that no one else had known that Snape had joined them.

"I know you're hiding something, you all are!" And then the metaphorical light bulb went off in everyone's minds. Dumbledore had been letting the attacks and warnings go because he had thought that they were being targeted by Voldemort for information that they were holding back from the Order. Where he had come up with such a theory no one could quite figure out, but the eminent danger of the situation was finally clear.

"The only person hiding anything here is you." Snape spoke quietly, each word punctuated by a step forward. Harry knew then that Snape was on their side and he could never be more thankful for the man's support. Dumbledore was scary when upset, but Snape was downright frightening.

"What is the meaning of this?" Professor McGonagall stormed into the room, the remaining heads of houses right behind her. All eyes fell on the three as they made their way closer toward the wall that Molly had Dumbledore backed up against. As soon as they got close enough to interfere, Arthur and Snape turned to stop them at wand point.

"Albus was just about to explain to us why he felt it was unnecessary to inform us that our daughter was hurt in an attack." Molly said in a deadly voice not taking her eyes off of the old man. She trusted that Snape and her husband would have her back.

"Honestly, Molly think of the example that you're setting for the children." Albus tried to reason, the kind tone not quite meeting his eyes. His eyes kept darting between her, the students and now McGonagall, Flitwick, and Sprout.

"So I am a child now?" Harry asked from his spot by the bed. While all of the teens were sitting watching the scene all of their wands had been drawn again when the other teachers had arrived.

"Stay out of this, Mr. Potter." Dumbledore warned coldly, all kind pretenses gone. At his words, Harry rose again. Draco held on to the boy's wrist for a moment before letting go. He knew better than to get in his way when he had his mind set on something.

"I thought that this was about me and some supposed secret you think I'm keeping." Harry's voice was low and challenging. His eyes were darker than anyone, but Draco had seen them before. Those closest to him flinched at the small shocks they were feeling from the raw magic rolling off of the volatile boy.

"Albus, this is ridiculous." Professor Sprout chided while keeping her eye on the teen. It did not bode well for anyone in the room with how worked up he was getting.

"They are hiding something and I will find out what!" Albus bellowed, grasping his wand faster than Mrs. Weasley could stop him.

"Then why don't you just ask me?" Harry boldly challenged making his way toward the man, his wand firmly in his grasp, though his arm hung by his side. "Use veritaserum if you don't believe me."

"Harry, dear don't be ridiculous!" Molly chided, though she kept her eyes on the old man to gauge his reaction. "That would be against the law!"

"But you forget, Dumbledore said just yesterday that I should be considered an adult. I am making the decision to allow veritaserum to be administered to me, but by Professor Snape." Harry reasoned and all of the adults with an exception to the man in question looked thoroughly baffled.

"So you are working together." Dumbledore nearly growled, but Harry merely shook his head.

"No, we are not. We might have our differences, but Professor Snape is first and foremost a potions master. I doubt that our differences would get in the way of him doing his job and giving me the right potion. His pride and reputation would be hurt if he purposely gave me the wrong potion."

"I've heard enough, Albus, this is getting out of hand." Professor McGonagall tried to cut in, but Snape was too quick and had already produced a vial from his robes. He moved next to Mrs. Weasley and held the uncorked vial up to the Headmaster's nose and then to his eye level. When Dumbledore was satisfied that it was in fact veritaserum, Snape handed it over to Harry. The boy did his own observation of the liquid as well and then drank it all in one gulp. They waited for the potion to set in before the interrogation began.

"What is your name?" Snape intoned.

"Harry James Potter." Harry answered easily.

"Who were your parents?"

"James Potter and Lily Evans Potter." There was a flicker of pain in Snape's eyes at the mention of Lily, but Harry acted as if he hadn't seen it. He would have to ask the man about it later.

"What is your patronus?" Snape sounded bored at the point, but Harry knew it was an act, he could tell that Snape was watching him carefully, as if he was trying to work out if he had a plan or if his young, rash actions were about to get everyone in trouble.

"A stag." If Harry's friends were surprised that he was been able to lie they didn't say anything, much to Harry's relief. He hadn't tried to lie under the influence of the potion before, but he figured that with his spike in magic he should be able to do so if he concentrated hard enough.

"Are you satisfied that the potion is working?" Snape asked snidely and Dumbledore ignored him. He easily pushed past Molly who stumbled back into the strong arms of her husband who was standing right by her side and caught her.

"What are you hiding from me?" Dumbledore got in Harry's face, but the boy managed not to react. He was mad, the magic still radiated off of him, but his face was completely impassive.

"Nothing worth mentioning." Harry smirked which only infuriated the man.

"What aren't you telling me?" Dumbledore tried again and this time Harry pretended to wince, as if he was trying to fight off the potion, though his friends knew better. "What aren't you telling me!" The old man yelled this time and Harry flinched back for effect before whispering his response through gritted teeth.

"I am in love with Draco Malfoy." The boy whispered, his eyes widening. He vaguely heard the gasps around him, though his friends were not surprised in the slightest. Harry remembered to look chagrined as if he hadn't wanted to say that out loud.

"That is enough." Professor McGonagall stepped forward and physically removed Dumbledore from Harry's space. "Professor Snape, tend to the students and then meet us in the Headmaster's Office. Mr. and Mrs. Weasley you may stay with your daughter and then I can fill you in on our meeting after or you may follow Severus up when he is done." Professors Flitwick and Sprout assisted Professor McGonagall in escorting the Headmaster out. Harry knew that the older man was just allowing them to think that they had control, he knew that this was not over and now the group had one more person to worry about in their fight against Voldemort.

"Are you alright dear?" All traces of the fierce woman who had just been staring down the powerful old wizard disappeared. Blaise attempted to disentangle himself from the girl to allow her mother to get closer, but the woman just nudged him right back to where he was. "It's good to see Gin being cared for, don't bother moving Dearie."

Hermione, Draco, and Harry backed up to stand by Snape, who had a very hard expression set on his face.

"How did you lie?" Hermione whispered to Harry so only the four could hear them.

"Honestly? Not sure, I sort of just did." Harry shrug and Snape snorted.

"What exactly did you lie about?" Snape asked, fearing the worst of the boy.

"Certainly not about loving your Godson." Harry responded genuinely, he linked his hands with Draco and couldn't help, but smile when he felt Draco's thumb slowly draw circles on his own hand.

"Good."

Harry's smile grew. There was something very relaxing about the moment that he found himself standing in. Ginny was surrounded by her family and Blaise, clearly loved and cared for. Hermione stood by his side, beaming at the sight before them while Draco stood on his other side, holding onto his hand not afraid of what those around them might think. And Snape, Snape was finally on their side and Harry couldn't feel safer knowing that there was a professor, specifically him, protecting them. Harry leaned closer to Draco, moving so he could pull the boy into his arms, and kissed him on the side of his head.

"What was that for?" Draco whispered, loving the feel of the arms securely holding him close.

"I love you." Draco turned his head to smile up at Harry and was surprised when the Gryffindor's lips found his own. "Thank you."

"What for?" Draco asked surprised and Harry continued to give him his dazzling smile.

"Everything."

Snape felt like a complete outsider to the scene before him. He could never begrudge his godson his happiness, truthfully he was more than happy to see that Harry was truly bringing out the light in Draco that he had lost under his horrid father's thumb, but he just didn't seem to fit in this place of happiness. Suddenly, Draco pulled away from Harry and stepped back to look up at Snape. With that infectious smile, Draco tugged on his hand like he used to as a child, pulling Snape into their little family.

"He's part of everything, you know." Draco grinned at Harry.

"I think I could accept that." Harry laughed at the slight blush coloring Snape's face. "I'm certainly not going to be looking at you like my father-"

"I would never expect that. Or want that." The added whisper brought giggles to Hermione, but Harry and Draco had the decency to pretend that they hadn't heard him. "I think it is time to sort out this mess, I expect you to fill me in on our agreement from yesterday as soon as possible."

"Of course, Sir." Harry nodded, becoming serious.

"At least in private, you may call me Severus." Snape extended the formality with a thin pull in his lips, though the smile in his eye showed Harry that he didn't quite mean the pained expression painted on his face.

"Thank you, Severus." The man in question collected Arthur and Molly, reminding the group to return to their rooms together and not to leave anyone alone, and made his way to the Headmaster's office. Harry moved back to his chair by Ginny's bedside and Draco sat at the foot. Hermione returned to Ron's lap and got comfortable again.

"Well what are we going to do about that?" Ginny asked pointedly, bringing everyone else into a fit of laughter.

"We're going to have to call another meeting, do you think tomorrow night would be too soon?"

"No that can easily be arraigned." Hermione took a quick glance around to make sure that Madame Pomfrey was not around before taking out her fake galleon and changing the time and date to the next day at nine o'clock. "Should we also have another meeting after?"

"I think that would be wise, I would like to have Severus up-to-date with all of our meetings as soon as possible."

"You just don't want him to bother you about it anymore." Draco joked, though Harry couldn't deny it.

"Alright then, have you figured out who will be dueling?" Hermione asked, ever the obsessive planner.

"Well I was going to have Gin do it, but considering the circumstances-" Harry looked to the injured girl, but she merely scoffed.

"I will be fine by tomorrow, I still want to do it." Ginny said firmly, cutting Ron off before he could protest. "Who will I be dueling?"

"Me." Draco smiled from across the bed. "But I'm not going easy on you, I promise."

"Good, I wouldn't expect it any other way."

* * *

As usual the crowd in the Room of Requirement was near full by nine o'clock. Harry and Hermione were setting up the dueling platform while the other members began to organize themselves on cushions around it. Fred and George were present as promised and they were scheming off to the side of the room with Dean and Seamus, though Harry and Hermione hardly noticed, otherwise they would have stopped them.

"I'm telling you, he's not going to be happy about this." Dean did his best to reason with the the trio, but his thoughts went unheard.

"If you just add this sticking charm," Fred started to say, waving his wand wildly, much to the amusement of the students who were paying attention.

"Then the Room won't be able to change it back until we fix it." George added gleefully.

"But how to get him to sit in it?" Seamus asked and Dean, knowing that it was bound to happen anyways, stepped in.

"Like this." He placed a very high level glamor charm on the chair they had transfigured so it looked like a simple cushion. He then added another sticking charm for good measure. "That way when he does sit down and the glamor disappears, he can't get up until we let him.

"And you didn't want to help." George beamed at the boy.

"It's good to see we left Hogwarts in good hands." Fred said while pretending to wipe away tears of joy from his eyes.

"Alright, what are you four up to, it can't be anything good." Harry grinned as he made his way to the pranksters. Hermione and Ron had already taken the cushions around them, much to the quartet's delight. Blaise stood next to Harry, a grin set on his face. The boy seemed to be part of whatever the four where planning.

"Nothing to worry about, have a seat!" Before Harry could protest, the twins physically forced Harry into the unsuspecting cushion. Much to the boy's surprise, the cushion transfigured back into a large throne like chair. It was glittering gold quite lavish. The wall behind it also changed to a gold backdrop with strange decorative carvings. The chair itself was set up high and stairs appeared out of nowhere, placing the older students sitting by Harry on a platform above their younger peers. The ornate design seemed to be a throwback to ancient Egyptian times and Harry tried to stand up, but to his horror found that he was literally stuck to the chair.

"Honestly, you four-" Harry tried to protest, but was cut off when the three began to regal him in song.

"Potter is our King." They began in an impressive barbershop quartet impression that he was sure only Seamus and Dean would know since they were muggle-born. When they wrapped up their verse, the whole room applauded, drowning out Harry effectively.

"Alright, you lot win." Harry rolled his eyes and the four took their seats around the boy. "I suppose we should start the duel now." Though he sounded resigned, the smile was clear in his eyes and Draco and Ginny both took to the mock stage. "This duel is not choreographed. The purpose of it is to show you the many spells and techniques that we have been teaching you for the past month. Both Draco and Ginny have agreed to do this, I'm sure that knowing them there will be trash-talking involved, I would pay that no mind." At this everyone in the room laughed. "With that being said, I would like to have the two meet in the middle and bow, then take up your dueling stances.

Draco and Ginny met in the middle of the raised platform and bowed as was customary to in a proper duel. They parted after exchanging pleasantries. Draco stood at one end, wand raised above his head in a duel stance. Ginny stood on the other side, her wand pointed straight in front of herself, her other arm behind her back. They stared each other down waiting for Harry to give the signal.

"You may begin."

" _Aguamenti!_ " Draco wasted no time in firing off the first spell. Ginny was ready, however and cast a quick, strong shield spell in response. This caught the boy off guard and she wasted no time in advancing on the boy, pushing him to walk backwards. She sent a quick, strong bat-bogey hex while forcing him to retreat, but Draco deflected it with ease. They continued to dance around each other, sending spells and hexes at each other at such a whirlwind pace that even Harry had a hard time keeping up on occasion.

Harry had always known that Ginny was a good duelist. She was a very strong and smart witch and her ability to think quickly on her feet was one of her greatest assets. Draco's obvious skill, on the other hand, came as a bit of a surprise to Harry. He had always known that the boy was skilled with his wand and he had never doubted that his Slytherin tendencies could get him out of most binds, but it was obvious by watching the boy that he knew what he was doing rather than just keeping up. A strength that Harry had never seen before in the boy suddenly made itself known and the Gryffindor was extremely impressed. All this time he had thought that he would have to protect the boy when it came to the war, but now he could see that he couldn't be more wrong. Draco was strong, and there was no denying it.

Ginny, Harry knew, had learned how to duel from years of fighting with and being trained by her six older brothers. Her spell casting abilities were much more advanced than Draco, something she would have learned from having to deal with her brothers, but Draco had a clear advantage. While Ginny dueled in what could only be described as a street method, Draco's refined footwork and perfect balance showed that he had been trained by a professional duelist, most likely hired by his father. True to his Slytherin nature, Draco was relying on his own strength, turning it against the girl by using her own momentum to trip her up. While she was casting spells faster than he could keep up, he continued to dance around her in a dizzying pattern until he was sure that he had her completely unbalanced.

" _Expelliarmus!_ " Draco shot the spell just past Ginny, not intending to actually disarm her. Instead he watched with triumph when she tripped over her own feet to avoid the spell and landed flat on her back.

"You give up, Weasley?" Draco taunted from above the girl, a smirk set firmly on his face. He started to walk slowly toward her, his eyes trained on her wand and his body ready to jump back at any moment.

"Never." Ginny bit back, jumping up in an impressive acrobatic feat, landing perfectly and in a dueling stance.

"Good, I expected a good fight from you." Draco returned, falling into a dueling stance easily as well as they began to circle each other again.

The room was dead silent as they watched the two circle each other. The duel had been going on for over a half hour and while it seemed that it was nowhere near ending, Harry could tell that both Draco and Ginny were getting tired. They were breathing heavily, though they trained themselves to not only quiet each intake of air, but also every step they took. They were closely watching the other to gauge how tired the other was. It was only a matter of time before the match came to a close.

“ _Petrificus totalus!_ ” Ginny made the first move, trying to rush forward and surprise him.

“ _Levicorpus!_ ” Draco responded quickly. Their spells clashed in the middle and they jumped back just in time to avoid the sparks of magic that rained down from the explosion, threatening to shock them with each glint in the light.

“ _Stupefy!_ ” The boy retaliated before Ginny gained her bearings.

“ _Protego!_ ” Ginny extended her arm, pouring all of her magic into the spell.

“ _Diffindo!_ ” The spell shot through the air and shattered the shield. The force of the two spells rebounding knocked Ginny off her feet once again and she fell back, her wand gripped tight in her hand. Draco watched her from the other side, not willing to move. This was meant to be a friendly competition and while he wasn’t going to throw in the towel to check and see if she was okay, he didn’t want to hurt her.

“Alright, you win.” Ginny smiled, standing slowly as she began to feel her body tense. She would be sore in the morning, but the workout had been worth it.

“Well that’s the match, let’s hear it for Draco and Ginny.” It was as if Harry had lifted a spell off of the room. Suddenly they were all clapping and cheering. Dean lifted the sticking charm keeping Harry in place and the boy, along with Blaise, walked down to the platform to check on their respective lovers. Draco and Ginny were sitting on the edge of the platform, the Gryffindor leaning on the Slytherin’s shoulder. Hermione and Ron joined them moments later.

“How are you holding up?” Blaise reached them first, handing them each a bottle of water.

“Not bad, it could have been worse.” Ginny grinned, jumping down and walking into Blaise’s open arms.

“I still think we should rematch when you are feeling better, it’s more fair.” Draco offered, also allowing Harry to wrap him in a hug.

“Always the gentleman.” Harry laughed, kissing the blond firmly on the lips. “I think we should call the meeting early, we have more important things to discuss anyways.”

“Sure, I’ll go wrap everything up.” Hermione said, casting a spell to make the platform sink back into the floor, and gathered the younger students to make sure that they left in small, controlled groups.

“Do you think that this will go over well?” Ron asked, voicing the worries that had been on all of their minds since the day before.

“Well introducing us went over better than anyone could hope.” Blaise pointed out which made Draco roll his eyes.

“I think those where extenuating circumstances.”

“No, you two are far more charming.” Ginny teased.

Hermione was busy ushering the rest of the younger students out of the room while Dean and Seamus where rearranging the cushions for the smaller amount of members still present. It took longer than necessary to organize everyone back into a group, Fred and George were making it difficult with their constant jokes and pranks. By the time everyone was situated, Draco and Ginny had cleaned up and it was nearly eleven o'clock. Hermione, Ron, Blaise, Ginny, and Draco took their seats on the stairs around Harry's throne. The green-eyed boy merely rolled his eyes and sat on the stairs with them, avoiding the ornate chair.

"So the reason why we let everyone else go early tonight is because we have some very important things to discuss. It has come to our attention that we as students might be in more danger than we previously thought." Harry looked to Ginny to pick up from there. She was the one who had gotten hurt, it was only fair to let her explain.

"When my broom was cursed during the game, Dumbledore completely ignored protocol and didn't alert my parents that anything had happened to me. He also dismissed the incident and labeled it as an accident even though we all know that it was an attack."

"Dumbledore no longer cares for our safety, when he was confronted on the matter just this morning, he accused us of hiding something important from him. We are under the impression that he believes that we are planning something or that we have some inside information on Voldemort." Hermione picked up for Ginny. She knew that while many of the fellow Order members might be skeptical about believing Dumbledore's actions, many would believe if they heard it from her since she had always been an advocate of the old wizard.

"That being said, he's lost more allies from this stunt then he thinks." Draco took over next. They had agreed that it would make the most sense for him to pose the question of allowing Snape into their ranks. He was very well trusted by the Order at this point and with Snape being his godfather, it would make the most sense for him to fight for his acceptance. "It is more important than ever for us to have an ally in the Professor's ranks and Harry has already been approached by one who suggested that he build a core group within the DA to train for war. I just want to say to you all that you have been more than incredible in accepting Blaise and I and I hope that you can continue to keep such an open mind. The Professor who is interested in helping us is my godfather, Professor Snape."

As expected the news was received with mixed emotions. Everyone began to talk over each other at once and it was impossible to hear anyone. Dean, Seamus, and Neville seemed more weary than anything, while the Hufflepuffs seemed more afraid by the idea. Luna just stared off into the distance without a care while others form her house where turning the numbers over in their heads. The Gryffindors as a whole just seemed to be watching their leaders, quietly supporting their decisions even if they didn't quite understand them just yet. The noise was just getting louder as too many opinions were thrown around and no one was even listening to anyone else.

"Everyone just shut up!" Ginny screamed over the noise effectively silencing the room.

"Thank you Gin, now I hate to do this, but we're going to have to go by raised hands, I want to make sure all of your questions are answered and that everyone hears the answer. I know that this is not what any of you expected, but this is a serious situation that you all need to understand and we just want to help you. We are at the brink of war and having Snape as an ally just might save us in the end, so who knows? Justin, I saw your hand first."

"How do we know that we can trust him?" Justin Finch-Fletchly asked and many in the room agreed. It seemed like the question that was on most everyone's mind and Harry was glad that it was the first question asked.

"How did you know that you could trust us?" Blaise spoke up, which was very rare for the Slytherin.

"He doesn't have to come around to meetings right away." Harry cut in before things could get too out of hand. "But I need all of your permission to even tell him in the first place. I trust him, I believe having his insight would be a great advantage, I know for a fact that despite how he acts, he really cares about Draco so by proxy he will stay loyal to us at least for him. Neville?"

"Will he be taking over as leader?" It was another good question, one that the six hadn't actually given any thought.

"No, he won't interfere unless he thinks that the way we are running things is putting ourselves or others in danger. I think he will respect that while Harry is our leader, we all have equal say in just about everything that happens." Draco answered this time and his words seemed to calm down most everyone.

"Okay I'm sure that you all have more questions, but it's getting late and we all have classes in the morning. I just need all of you to sign the document that Hermione has kindly set up for us on your way it. It just allows me to talk to Snape about this group existing as well as allow him access to this room while we hold meetings should he see fit to come. If you don't want to sign, please come see me and we can work something out."

While each member walked up to the table to sign their name, Draco and Harry stood off the the side, Harry with his arms wrapped around the blond’s waist as he held him from behind.

"I'm surprised that they are all willingly signing to allow Snape access to this place." Harry said genuinely shocked and Draco just laughed, shaking his head and tickling Harry's face with his hair brushing back and forth.

"They trust you, love. And for good reason too." Draco said gently, feeling Harry tense at his words.

"Sometimes I don't know if I deserve their trust." Harry whispered under his breath, but at their close proximity Draco still heard his comment. This wasn't the first time that Draco noticed the boy doubt himself. It seemed completely out of character for Harry, his Harry, to act self-conscious, but Draco had a feeling that there was something that Harry wasn't telling him.

"I can't think of a reason for anyone not to trust you." Draco turned in his arms to smile up at his lover. Gently he leaned up to capture his lips in a tender kiss. "We all believe in you, love, and I know you won't say it or tell me why, but you don't believe in yourself, or at least as much as you should."

"I'm sorry, I just don't want to talk about it now." Harry whispered, a single tear falling down his face.

"It's okay, I'm not asking you to, I'm just letting you know that I am here for you when you're ready." The rest of the room had cleared by this point. Neither boy noticed that they were the only ones left or that everyone had signed the paper with no issues. The rest of the world melted away as they held onto each other. As much as Harry would have liked to bury his own insecurities, the ugly words and threats that his Uncle use to yell at him still came up to the forefront of his mind and haunted him. Nights like this night reminded him that he was loved and sometimes would question why, why anyone would love him, but now he had Draco and while he couldn't tell him then, Harry knew that when he was ready, Draco would be there for him to bare his soul and start the much needed healing process.

"Thank you." Harry whispered, reclaiming Draco's lips in a soft kiss. "Thank you."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Bonus points if you know what movie I was referencing with the dual...


	12. Chapter 12

"Mr. Potter, are you trying to blow up your cauldron?" Snape sneered at the boy while watching him stir the potion that he was attempting to brew. Harry was in the beginning stages and he knew full well that with only one ingredient in the cauldron, there was no way he had messed anything up, yet.

"Of course, Professor, how did you know?" Harry smirked back. He knew that Snape was just picking a fight to save face. That and if he gave the man a reason to give him a detention then it would be easier to have a conversation with him without having any unwanted company.

"Detention, Potter, for your insolence and fifty points for your tongue."

Harry rolled his eyes and pretended to be put out, but internally he was very glad that Snape was, in his own way, opening the door for Harry and showing that he was willing to make their truce work. He knew that his classmates would be none too happy about the loss of points, but he was sure that they would forgive him.

"Good going, Mate." Ron said bitterly from his left, but the slight quirk of his lips told Harry a whole different story. Hermione was nodding enthusiastically from Ron's other side. Her hands were just as steady while chopping ingredients as ever, but from the slight shake of her shoulders, Harry would tell that she was laughing.

"Enough chatter, unless you all want to have detention with him." Snape warned from the front of the class, effectively silencing the class, his eyes sweeping over his students with distaste. While it seemed like he was glaring at the Gryffindors, he was really trying to evaluate if there were any other students acting oddly. It was obvious that Nott wasn't acting alone and that the other person involved had to be smart, but they had no further hints.

Harry was thinking along the same lines of his Professor. While he did his best to scan the room for anyone paying a little too much attention to them, Blaise worked silently on their potion. Draco was sitting in front of them, working with Neville. They were hoping that if they switched up the normal partners, it would garner a reaction from their attacker. Nott was in the class, and his eyes kept darting toward them every so often, the sneer on his face was chilling, but Harry wasn't afraid of him. Like Snape, he was sure that there was someone else working with the boy, Nott had never struck him as smart enough to pull off a scheme like this and Harry was quickly coming to the conclusion that whom ever it was, they were not with them in the potions class. Abandoning the search, Harry returned his focus to helping Blaise with their potion.

It was a fairly simple potion and Harry was able to work on auto-pilot. He and Blaise worked in complete silence for the rest of class, the other boy took their complete work up to Professor Snape while he took up to cleaning their workspace. The rest of the class was already fileing out when Harry finished cleaning, only Draco and Blaise remained.

"Mr. Potter, you will serve detention promptly after dinner. Arrive at my office no later than fifteen past. Do you understand?" It wasn't a question, but Harry nodded anyways. They were keeping up the act just incase someone was watching outside the door.

"Of course, Sir." The retort was sarcastic and Harry left, Snape's eyes glaring into his back. He was flanked by the two Slytherins so it was Blaise who noticed Nott first.

"Eavesdropping, Nott?" Blaise sneered and he and Harry stepped in front of Draco instinctively.

"No, I just needed to talk to Professor Snape." Nott challenged back, but the way his eyes kept shifting to the blond behind the two made Harry's skin crawl.

"Then go talk to him, don't let us stop you." Harry stepped aside to let the boy pass, making sure to keep Draco behind him. The three watched as the door shut behind the sketchy boy. "Keep an eye on him." Harry said quietly.

"With pleasure." Blaise nodded taking Harry's words as an order. While the boy himself was never comfortable being seen as their sole leader, and he hardly gave out any orders, Blaise as well as all of the other members of the DA respected him more than the boy could imagine and Blaise was happy to do as he was asked, especially since it would keep his little brother safe.

"Come on, we're going to be late for History of Magic." Draco pulled the two out of their thoughts and they made their way to their next class, the events of the past few days weighing heavy on all of their minds.

* * *

Harry raced down the darkened dungeon halls, dodging the few students that still mingled around. Dinner had just ended and Harry was going to be late for his detention if he didn't speed it up. He knew that while Snape and he were no longer on bad terms, they certainly weren't on good ones. Turning the last corner, Harry barreled to the door, stopping in time to catch his breath before knocking on the door.

"You're late." Snape glared down at the boy, moving aside to allow the boy entrance. He looked out into the hallway carefully before closing the door behind them, subtly silencing and warding the room.

"Unless you actually plan on punishing me, I think we should discuss the matter at hand." Harry got straight to the point. He took the seat across from Snape's desk, noting the tea that was waiting for him. The small gesture made the boy smile.

"I believe that we both know what the important matter at hand is." Snape said, his eyes calculating. He took the seat across from the boy, his hands folding on the desk, his tea untouched.

Harry nodded and took out the piece of parchment with the list of Order members. He handed the man the list, watching as his eyes scanned the page slowly, his expression changing occasionally from passive disinterest, confusion, and even annoyance at times.

"We started the group before you asked me to, but I needed their permission to tell you about it." Snape nodded his approval, setting the parchment aside and pulled out a new one, placing it on his desk. He also took out his quill and an inkwell.

"I would like to review what we both know. We can move from there." Harry nodded and took out another stack of papers from his bag. He waved his hand over the stack, whispering a complex counter charm. Suddenly elegant script wrote itself across the parchment in Draco's distinct handwriting.

"This is what we can surmise so far, it's not much." Snape took the offered papers and quickly skimmed through them. There were notes from the core of Order, which was made up of Harry, Draco, Ron, Hermione, Ginny, Blaise, Luna, Neville, Seamus, and Dean, ranging from all topics such as who the second attacker might be to what Voldemort might be planning. Snape could not deny that he was impressed by the work that the group had compiled.

"What about this page?" Harry looked over the desk, recognizing his own handwriting. It was his notes on what he had already thought the DA as a whole as well as a list of what he wanted to teach them. It was more than spells however and some simple potions were also on the list. Snape was pointing to that section. "I could be of service if you like." More than shocked by the man's offer, Harry simply nodded. He had only listed the potions as a way of not forgetting the list he and Hermione had argued over for countless hours. She had wanted to teach more, but with the time constraints as well as a lack of ingredients it would have been difficult enough to teach them as it was, but with Snape helping it would be significantly easier.

"We would be honored to have you teach us." Harry seemed to think is answer over again before slightly retracting his statement. "Actually, we would be honored to have Severus teach us, if you're just going to be your usual Snape self then I'm sure we can manage on our own." It was polite, but honest which made the older man smirk. He appreciated the boy's honesty amongst all else.

"I'm sure that can be arraigned." Harry took the man's smirk as a good sign. He had been afraid that he might have overstepped unspoken boundaries, but as glad to see that he hadn't. Even with everything that had transpired between the two over the years, they were able to sit together and have a civil conversation, something that Harry found himself incredibly grateful for.

"I was hoping that we could also talk about something else I've found troubling." Snape seemed intrigued and he sat back, taking up his cuppa while watching the boy carefully. "I was beginning to think that things here at Hogwarts will only continue to get worse and while I feel that we are relatively safe now, it's obvious that Dumbledore is slowly losing his grip on reality and before long the board will try to remove him again."

"I saw those in Mr. Zabini's notes, yes." Snape nodded, his eyes scanning that particular section again before allowing the boy to continue.

"Yes well, I have come to the conclusion that there will come a time when I and some of the others in our Order will no longer be able to stay here, especially when he's gone, Voldemort will have far less to fear and will most likely strike." Snape had read those assumptions in the notes as well and assumed that there was more to it then what Harry had shared with his fellow Order members. "I need to arrange a meeting with Bill Weasley. Of course I would normally ask Ron for his help, but this is something I need to do without alerting them first."

"And what is it that you require from the eldest Weasley?"

"I would rather not say for now, if it is all the same." Harry said, not averting his eyes from the dark ones studying him. Snape saw no reason to distrust the boy so he simply nodded.

"If that is all then I would say this detention is more than over." Harry checked the time and was surprised to find that it was well past ten, he hadn't realized how long they had poured over the notes.

"Oh, I nearly forgot." Harry pulled out a galleon from his pocket and handed it to the man. "This is how we've been communicating meeting times. Hermione charmed them so the serial numbers change to the date and time of the next meeting. They grow warm when the number changes. For those in the Order, they will change three times, first to the DA meeting, a second time to allow them to know that there is an Order meeting after so they can plan accordingly, and then lastly back to the original DA time. We meet in the Room of Requirement, simply think the words Dumbledore's Army and you will be granted entrance."

"I had always wondered how you communicated, it's rather ingenious." Snape said, holding the fake coin to the candlelight to further observe it.

"Hermione will be delighted to hear that." Harry smiled genuinely. Snape snorted and gave the boy his best stern glare.

"You will tell her no such thing. A man has to keep some of his reputation." Harry rolled his eyes at the man's antics, but agreed. "Very well, off with you lest someone things that I actually enjoy your company." At that, Harry outright laughed. He felt more than heard the other man drop the wards on the office before he let himself out into the cold, drafty corridor.

As Harry made his way back up to his room, he became deep in thought about the many plans he had for the Order. He knew that keeping secrets from his friends would just cause more confusion and hurt in the end, but as far as he was concerned, it was worth it. The reason that he needed to talk to Bill was because the man worked at Gringotts and Harry needed to access certain, sensitive information about his vaults and properties within without alerting anyone that he was doing so.

Harry was in no way naive. He knew that Voldemort as well as Dumbledore where keeping close tabs on him. While Dumbledore knew that he was far more powerful than he let on, the fact that the papers hadn't reported it as well as the fact that he didn't have any Death Eaters breathing down his neck showed Harry that at least the old man hadn't sold him out. He wasn't really sure what the wizard was up to, but he wasn't convinced that he was necessarily evil, but rather he was getting old and this war was taking its toll on the man's fragile sanity. That didn't mean that he felt any sympathy towards the man, however. He would never forgive him for the way that he manipulated all of the Order members, especially when he seemed to unwilling to tell anyone what he obviously knew.

No, if he never talked to the man again it would be too soon. It was only the fact that the man was obviously hiding something that made Harry keep him close. And the clock was ticking on the time that he had left. Like he had said to Snape, it was only a matter of time before the old wizard was taken out of the school again and that was the real reason Harry was going to talk to Bill. Harry knew that there would come a time when he would have to leave the school to a safe location, somewhere where he could bring the closest Order members whom would be in the most danger and continue to train them until the final battle. In order to do that, Harry would need a house and a secret keeper. He would also have to tell Bill as little as possible, as the man would not be the secret keeper, but Harry had faith that the eldest Weasley son would trust Harry enough to help him. That and when Harry was done, he would be allowing the man access.

But that brought up another problem. There was no way that Harry was going to be secret keeper. Of course he would have to at first, he would be the one to erect the spells, but after he would move the power over to someone else. Unlike his parents and Sirius, however, he would make sure that the other person could be trusted explicitly. The thought of Sirius made his heart clench and Harry realized that it had been a very long time since he had thought about his Godfather. With his life being as crazy as it was, trying to protect Draco and Ginny while maintaining high grades, running not one, but two underground operations, and train with the quidditch team, Harry had been so busy in the last two and a half months that the man hardly crossed his mind. Instantly Harry felt guilt wash over him, he barely noticed that he had come to the door of his and Draco's dorm until Godric clearing his throat caught his attention.

"What's the matter, my boy?" The kind wizard asked, concern etched on his face.

"It's nothing." Harry mumbled, trying to push back his tears.

" _Give us the password and then we can talk inside_." Salazar hissed in parseltongue as he slid into the frame.

" _Soccer_." Harry hissed back. He had set the password to the muggle sport figuring that no student would guess it since it was only called by that name in the United States so even if a student was trying to guess muggle things, they would most likely not think of the American term.

The portrait swung open and Harry walked in slowly. He hadn't realized that he had been speaking in parseltongue, otherwise he would have noticed the secondary precaution that the two wizards in the portrait seemed to have set in place. If he had noticed, it would have worried him even further.

Draco sat alone on the couch, his lower half wrapped in a heavy quilt. He was reading a book, though the way his eyes seemed to flutter closed every few seconds as if they were too heavy to keep open made Harry guess that he was falling asleep more than reading. Sighing, Harry did his best to pull himself together before joining the boy on the couch. The blond jumped slightly in surprise when he felt Harry sit next to him. He set the book down and spread the quilt out to cover Harry too. When he looked up, however, the sleep seemed to clear from his eyes and concern replaced it.

"What's wrong, love?" Draco wrapped his arms around Harry, pulling the boy's head down onto his shoulder. "And don't tell me nothing, because I simply won't believe you."

"Neither will we." Salazar said from the portrait above the fireplace. He and Godric where sitting on the loveseat in the picture, wrapped up in each other just as Harry and Draco were.

"Consider this an intervention, Harry. You have been working yourself too hard, we've all seen it, it's time you slow down and tell us what's wrong." Godric coaxed and Draco began to draw small circles on the boy's lower back, calming the boy and letting him know that he was there and wouldn't be telling go anytime soon.

"What if I don't want to talk about it?" Harry whispered and Draco sighed.

"We're not going to make you talk, if you don't want to, but we all think that it would help you to talk this out. We're all just worried about you."

"I don't mean to make you worry." Harry buried his face even further into the nape of Draco's neck taking in the boy's minty scent. It seemed to instantly calm him and he took another breath before continuing. "I just realized with everything going on, I've completely forgotten about Sirius."

When the words finally left the boy's lips, tears formed and he began to cry. Draco's arms tightened as Harry let out heart-broken sobs, all of the locked up emotions that had been building for months were finally being set free and Harry could no longer hold anything in. The sound of his love crying out his soul tore at Draco and he did his best to stifle his own tears. Harry's pain hurt him more than he could describe, but he had to be strong for the boy and he could hold himself together is only he knew that it would help the Gryffindor.

"You have been doing so much and you've been so busy, I know for a fact that he doesn't blame you." Draco tried to sooth the boy, feeling as he curled even tighter into himself until he was in Draco's lap, doing his best to take up as little room as possible with his arms wrapped tightly around his legs. With all of the movement, Harry's glasses were knocked off his face and fell to the floor. Draco would have normally reached out to get them, but he didn't want to let go of the boy, even for a second.

"You don't know that." Harry cried, anguished through uneven breaths.

"I might not have known him, but I know that you loved him and he loved you. You were the son of his best mates, and like a son to him. If Sev died he would forgive me for working so hard that I'm not thinking of him all the time. He would have wanted that." Draco got slightly choked up at the mention of Severus. He had never known Sirius, but he assumed that he and Harry had a similarly close relationship that he had with his own Godfather and he couldn't imagine life without the dour potions master.

"Merlin, how could I forget him?"

"You didn't though, he lives on in everything you do, that's what we're fighting this war, we're doing this for them, for the people we love who are still here. You know what? I have an idea." Draco took out his wand and summoned a piece of parchment, a quill, and an ink well. "When you're ready, I want you to write down everything you want to say to him okay?" Harry nodded into Draco's shoulder, his breath slowing. Draco gently pulled back, wiping away the remaining tears that still tracked down his face.

When Harry finally calmed down enough, he reached down to pick up his glasses and  put them back on. He then took up the quill with a shaking hand and began to write. More tears formed at the corner of his eyes as he wrote and Draco silently cast a spell to insure that the falling tears would not smudge the letter. They sat together for almost and hour, Harry doing his best to write without breaking down again while Draco sat behind him, gently massaging the boy's back and shoulders, avoiding reading the obviously personal letter. When Harry was done he set down the quill and fell back into Draco's waiting arms. He sighed, the tears finally dried, allowing Draco to place gentle kisses on his temple and cheeks.

"What now?" Harry's voice was hoarse from crying and the raw sound almost brought Draco to tears.

"Now we send it. I think that the muggle equivalent is a message in a bottle? Well in the wizarding world, the belief is that you can write a letter to someone you've lost and spell it so that only they can read it. They you charm it to fly up into the sky where Sirius will be able to read it.

"I'm not sure Sirius went to heaven." Harry chuckled in spite of himself.

"I'm sure he did, love." Draco did the rest of the necessary wand work, though he hand folded the parchment into a paper crane.

"You really need to teach me how to do that." Harry whispered, watching his lover's fingers work quickly from memory. It was beautiful to watch the long, thin fingers work with such precise motions.

"Of course." Draco smiled, finishing with the last fold, making the tail bend down. He stood with the origami crane in hand, his other hand extended to help Harry up. He laced his fingers in Harry's gently pulling the boy with him and out of the dorm.

"I'm so glad that they have each other." Godric said, a small, sad smile gracing his lips. He and Salazar had stayed with the two through the whole time. He turned to his lover, pulling the man into his arms. Harry's pain had hit both of them just as it had Draco and the somber mood remained in the room despite the two leaving.

"Just like I've always had you." Salazar nodded, kissing the man soundly. "Come, we should wait for them to return." They left the frame together, moving into the the portrait in the hallway, waiting for the boys' return.

Draco was leading Harry to the Astronomy Tower, careful to keep in the shadows as to not draw the attention of any teachers or prefects. They stayed silent through the quick journey, Draco leading the entire way, looking back to check on Harry every few minutes. When they finally reached the tower, Draco brought them to one of the large, open windows.

"You should be the one to set it flying." Draco said softly, placing the delicate crane in Harry's open palm.

The boy picked it up gingerly, just staring at it for a moment. Draco stood by his side, allowing him whatever space he needed. When Harry was done, he outstretched his hand so he was reaching out of the window and set the crane off with a silent spell. He stepped back fully into the tower and felt as Draco's arms wrapped around his waist from behind. More silent tears fell from Harry's eyes as the pair watched the crane soar farther and farther up into the sky, until they could no longer see it.

"Take me to bed, Draco." Harry whispered suddenly, turning to his boyfriend, tears shining in his eyes. "I need to know that you love me, please."

Draco didn't question the boy and simply nodded. Together the two made their way back to their room. Luckily they avoided all other people the whole way and soon Draco was lying Harry down gently in their bed.

Draco made slow work of disrobing Harry, taking his time to gently kiss and lick every inch of skin as he exposed it. He started at the boy's long neck, working gently on the flesh as his long fingers took care with each button of the boy's shirt. Silent tears still fell from Harry's eyes and Draco alternated between kissing him and gently wiping them away. At any other time Draco might have been offended that Harry was crying, especially with all of the attention that the blond was bestowing upon him, but he understood the pain that the brunet was feeling and he resolved to continue to make sure that he knew that he was loved.

When Draco finally removed the boy's shirt, he moved down his chest, his lips and teeth ghosting over the boy's nipples, pulling low groan from the Gryffindor. From his spot hovering just above his love, Draco looked up to see the tears gone from the boy's eyes and a dark cloud of lust replaced them. Satisfied that he had at least managed to bring Harry out of his crying spell, Draco nipped at the buds a bit harder before making small, precise love bites all over Harry's abdomen. Harry moaned at every bite, the pain and pleasure mixing making it hard for him to lie still, the sharp pinches grounding him as much as they sent him even further into oblivion. When Draco's tongue dipped into his navel, Harry cried out, his hands making their way into the blond's silken locks, carding through them while Draco made very quick work of his pants.

Harry's eyes were shut tight so when Draco's hot mouth completely engulfed his erect cock, Harry was completely surprised and he nearly came at the sensation. In contrast to how he undressed him, Draco's mouth move quickly over Harry's cock, gripping it at the base to keep him from cumming too soon as his tongue teased the underside of the head and then dipped into the slit. Harry was panting and babbling in parseltongue which only spurred the blond on.

" _Merlin Draco, more_." Harry hissed and while the blond wasn't sure exactly what the boy was saying, it was safe to say that he got the gist and he picked up the pace, moving his hand so he could move even further down the shaft, relaxing his throat to swallow Harry completely. The boy cried, his hands fisting the bedding and his hips moving of their own accord. Draco had to keep one arm firmly on his hips to keep himself from choking. He could tell that Harry was getting closer by the sounds that he was making and he redoubled his efforts, allowing his free hand to wander down and swirl around the boy's hole making Harry buck down onto the intrusion. " _Fuck Draco, so close_."

The sound of Harry speaking in the ancient language along with the taste of him in his mouth drove Draco wild and he ground his hips into the bed, not daring to stop sucking Harry to deal with his own erection. He didn't have too, however, and the string of parseltongue mixed with everything else proved to be too much for the blond and he came without even being touched, his moans vibrating around Harry's cock making the boy fall over the edge seconds after. Draco made sure to swallow all of the boy's seed, despite riding out his own orgasm. When he was done, he slowly made his way up to lie next to Harry. The Gryffindor, pulled him up into his arms, spelling the blond naked, effectively taking care of the mess that covered both of them.

"That was the hottest thing ever." Harry whispered in English this time to Draco could understand him, the blond only moaned in response, snuggling closer to the warm arms lulling him to sleep. "Thank you."

"Merlin, I love you." Draco whispered in response and Harry's heart suddenly began to beat faster. Sure he had asked Draco to prove that he had loved him, but he had never actually said the words yet.

"I love you too." Harry whispered back, pulling the blond into a searing kiss. "I love you so much." All tension fell from Draco at the boy's words and he managed to draw Harry even closer, his eyes starting to shut on their own. "Good night." Harry whispered, but he knew that the blond was already asleep. Harry felt sleep tug at his consciousness and with one last silent spell to put out the candles, he gave into the temptation, falling into a restful, stress free sleep. Below in the common room, Sal and Godric where smiling gently at one another, happy that all of their chargers were home safe.

* * *

There was a cold draft wafting through Malfoy Manor that had nothing to do with the cold November air. The occupants where all convened in the main drawing room, situated in a circle, cowering before a sickly looking man with red eyes and slits for nostrils. He paced around the circle a few times, simply watching his followers for any hesitation or deceit. Most of the masked witches and wizards stood back, their eyes trained down, though Bellatrix stood forward more, her face exposed and her gaze falling on her master with pure admiration written all over her face. This pleased the man and he stopped his pacing in front of her, addressing the room.

"Our plan for infiltrating the school is going well." Voldemort nearly hissed and most of the people in the room shrank back even more. "Your son is doing better than I would have thought." Voldemort trained his eyes on Nott Sr. who bowed low before his master before stepping back into line. "But he is not alone, your daughter is doing equally well, I've heard that she is even running the plan, how delightful. I'm sure you and your wife are so proud."

"We are, My Lord." Mr. Greengrass said in his silky smooth, diplomatic voice. "We are so very glad our family could be of service." He too bowed, though much lower than Nott Sr. had which more than pleased Voldemort, but angered the other Death Eater.

"Kiss up." Nott Sr. growled, cursing internally when he realized that Voldemort had heard him.

"What was that, Nott? Ungrateful are we?" The powerful wizard glided to the man, stopping just close enough be within arms length.

"No, of course not." The man did his best to make amends, but he knew it was too late.

"Should you be taught a lesson, then? We could make an example of you, though I would think that you would all have learned already." Reflexively all eyes well to the arm corner of the room where a large cage sat shrouded in darkness. Inside sat a single cot, dirty from weeks of not being cleaned. There was also a disgusting bed pan that was only emptied once a day and a plate of what could hardly be considered food. Sitting on the floor in the middle of the mess was Narcissa Malfoy, dressed in rags and shivering from the aftershock of the cruciatus curse that had been casted on her hours ago. She was the _lesson_ that Voldemort had taught everyone, this was what happened if you or your family member switched sides and you were not on board for killing them.

"No, My Lord, you have made your point _perfectly_ clear." Nott said, averting his eyes from the disgusting sight as did everyone in the rest of the room except for Bellatrix. The woman in question walked slowly to the prisoner, her own sister, with a glint in her eye that could only be described as curiosity.

"May I, My Lord?" The childlike giddiness that seeped into her voice gave every Death Eater the chills.

"As you wish, Bella." Voldemort hissed, a terrifying grin forming on his face.

" _Crucio!_ " The deranged woman cried, her wand aimed at her sister. Narcissa's cries rang through her home, though unlike before they were no longer sobs of pain, but the wails of a mad woman. All those present were forced to watch and Voldemort's red eyes swept through the room to see if anyone would dare look away. Farthest from him stood a man in full robes with his mask on proper, but nothing could hide his silver hair from view. Lucius Malfoy stood helpless as his wife was once again brutally tortured before him. The sight became too much and he succumbed, looking away as he always did.

"I see you haven't learned your lesson." Voldemort said mockingly. Instantly a path to the man cleared.

" _Crucio_." The chilling calmness in which the curse was cast was even more frightening than Bellatrix's obvious madness. As Lucius fell to the floor in agony, screams ripped from him causing his raw vocal cords to scream in pain, his only thought was that at least Narcissa wasn't alone, at least he could share in her torture.


	13. Chapter 13

Severus Snape sat rigid in his chair. He was in Dumbledore's office bright and early on Saturday and he was less than pleased to be there. He'd been called by a summons that had woken him up at six in the morning and now that he was in the office, Dumbledore had the nerve to be late. The morning sun was high in the sky and the way it shown through the many tall windows of the office made Snape's eyes hurt. He had half the mind to draw the shades, but refrained. Many of the portraits were still sleeping, it was only just past eight, so this wasn't surprising, but one in particular was awake and watching the potion's master carefully.

"You're worried about him." Phineas Nigellus Black said, looking down on his fellow Slytherin with what seemed to be a sneer on his face.

"You worry about him too, don't give me that." Snape rolled his eyes. It was much too early in the morning to have a fight with a portrait.

"I have been keeping an eye on him, yes. But there is only so much I can do stuck in this frame."

"Is there something that you want me to do, because if just come out and say it maybe I can help you." The mix of the early morning and his general displeasure with the Headmaster keeping him waiting made Snape lose all decorum. He was fighting with a portrait and he couldn't give Merlin's left testicle over the matter.

"If you are going to be impatient boy then no. Remember who I am, I still demand respect from you, even from Albus."

"Well what will you have me do then?" Snape bit back, but this time was able to hold his anger in check enough to not enrage Phineas even further.

"For now just look after Potter. I will keep an eye on Albus for you and report to you via the portrait in your chambers."

"I am already looking after the brat." Snape rolled his eyes, but secretly he was so very relieved to have an inside man to look after the aging wizard. "How much longer until Albus graces me with his presence?" It was a snide remark, but he figured he could get away with it.

"I haven't the foggiest." Of course he wouldn't know, but that didn't make Snape feel any less annoyed at the man. He vowed to wait a few more minutes before going something more.

After another five minutes passed, Snape was about to get up and search for the man when the door to the office banged open and the aging wizard strolled in looking very troubled. Snape stayed quiet while he watched the powerful man set a fire in the hearth without so much as looking at it. He continued on into the room and as he got closer, Snape felt unbelievable dread fall over him. When the man stopped at his desk, he dropped a small object on the surface before taking a seat looking more tired than Snape felt. The Potions Master watching the object carefully, it looked like a ring, but the dark magic that it radiated made his skin crawl.

"That is a horcrux." Snape said more than asked, but Dumbledore nodded anyways.

"I am only mildly surprised that you knew what one was on sight."

"It's Voldemort's isn't it? It has his magical signature, I would recognize it anywhere." Again Dumbledore nodded, the wrinkles and worry lines on his face seemed to deepen.

"It seems that I was right as to the reason why Tom lived all those years ago when he attacked the Potters."

"If you knew why didn't you tell us?" Snape asked, his voice was even, but it was obvious by the way that he was shaking that he was more than a little upset.

"I wasn't sure at the time, it was only a speculation."

"Only speculation? That could have saved their lives!" Snape nearly yelled this time and the old man studied his spy as if he was a new and interesting puzzle that needed to be solved.

"Do you care for the boy?" Albus asked bluntly and the question startled the man before him.

"He cares for Draco and Draco is like my son." Emotion threatened to break through and Snape adverted his eyes for a moment, collecting himself. Draco was the only thing he had to live for, he would die protecting his son and if Harry meant something to him than of course he would care for the boy as well.

"That was not the question that I asked you." Albus smiled knowingly and some of the warmth that Snape hadn't seen in the man in a long time seemed to return.

"Are you saying all we have to do to end this is kill that _thing_?" Snape asked, to change the topic. Albus let the conversation go and refocused on the dark object before him.

"It's not that simple."

"I did not wake up at six in the bloody morning for you to be cryptic old man, don't play games with me."

"I believe that he has made six of them." Albus regarded his spy with a hard stare to prove that he was being serious.

"I'm sorry?" Snape gaped. He was truly gobsmacked at the news.

"I wasn't sure at first, I wanted to be sure, but I think this is the second one. The first one I came upon was already destroyed."

"What was it?"

"The diary that Harry stabbed in his second year."

"He doesn't know does he?" When Albus shook his head, Snape growled. "You have to tell the boy, this is incredibly important, it could be what saves him in the end." Something passed over the old man's face when Snape said the word save, but the spy didn't seem to notice. He was seeing red over the fact that the manipulative wizard was once again holding back information.

"I will tell him, but first you have to convince him to trust me again."

"I'm not sure I can do that." Snape cautioned, he figured he would be able to convince the boy to pretend to trust the man, but he wasn't sure if he would be able to fool the wizard with an act.

"Try." Albus reached forward to pick up the ring. "The only way to destroy this will be to wear it."

"Don't it will poison you!" Snape leaned forward to try to snatch up the piece, but Albus already slipped it on his finger. "What are you doing?"

"Whatever is necessary. Don't forget, you must convince the boy." In all of the years that Snape had known the Headmaster, he had never seen the man look so old and tired. He knew then that Albus was not evil, but rather that he was getting far too old and starting to lose his grip on reality, just as Harry had assumed. _That boy is so much smarter than he seems._ Snape nodded and stood to leave, taking one last glance at the man that he had once respected before leaving feeling much more heavy hearted than when he arrived.

* * *

"I'm not saying that it is easy, but it's not impossible." Hermione protested and Ron simply rolled his eyes.

"I don't even know why you took advanced potions, Weasley, obviously you can't follow it." Blaise smirked as he lay out on the rug in front of the fire.

The usual core group were spending their Saturday catching up on their homework and generally messing around and relaxing. Ron and Hermione were taking up the coffee table and sitting on the floor. Ginny and Blaise where both lying on their sides, him with his arm wrapped around her waist, while they read a quidditch magazine together, Ginny turning the page for them every few minutes or so. Harry and Draco were curled up on the couch, Harry was reading a book and Draco was lying in his lap, watching the Gryffindor couple before him bicker for pure entertainment. Neville, Seamus, and Dean were working on transfiguration on the large table behind the couches while Luna sat with them, being what she felt was helpful, but the other three saw as a distraction.

"Shut it, Zabini." Ron grumbled. "At least I'm doing my work."

"We finished all of ours yesterday." Harry cut in and Hermione looked at him with pride in her eyes while Ron seemed to look at his best friend as if he had never seen him before. "What? I barely had any to do anyways, I finished the potions essay the day after he assigned it."

"What in Merlin's name did you do with my best mate?" Ron shook his head, turning back to the work he had laid out in front of him.

"Obviously Draco is a good influence on him." Hermione smiled fondly at the two before turning back to help her hopeless boyfriend. Before anyone could reply, the common room door flew open and an aggravated Snape swooped in.

"You sure it was a smart idea to give him full access." Ron asked Harry, looking a bit frightened by their professor's facial expression.

"Don't worry." Harry rolled his eyes, nudging the boy in the back with his foot. Draco got up off of Harry and walked right up to his godfather, wrapping his arms around him in a big hug. This effectively silenced everyone in the room and they all watched amazed at seeing the usual dungeon bat acting human.

"What happened, Sev?" Draco whispered, pulling the man to sit down. He knew his godfather well and it was clear that the man was extremely upset about something, even if he didn't show it well.

"I just got out of a meeting with the Headmaster. I think it best we speak in private." Snape looked around at all of his students surrounding him, suddenly feeling very uncomfortable.

"If you think we must, but I can assure you that no one where will leak a word, and honestly I will most likely tell them later." Harry reasoned gently, though the small scowl on Snape's face made it obvious that he won.

"Fine." Snape groaned, running his hand over his face before beginning. "Do you know what horcruxes are?"

"They're dark magic." Neville piped up, Blaise and Draco nodded, but Snape was not surprised to see that no one else did. They were very rare magic and he was a bit surprised that the three had even heard about them in the first place.

"They are literally a part of a person's soul."

"How is that possible?" Hermione asked fascinated, which again did not surprise Snape in the slightest.

So Snape began to explain them what horcruxes were exactly and how to make them. He even told them all of Dumbledore's theories as well as the fact that in order for them to obtain more information Harry would have to go and talk to the man himself and convince the old wizard that he forgave him for his actions against Ginny. When he was done everyone in the room looked just as uneasy as he felt and for that he felt a little bad, he didn't want to scare his students. They were children and much too young to have to go through this, but they had each other and now they had him to help. He knew that he wouldn't be able to protect them all, but he would do his best.

"So what you're saying is that we have to find all of these things and kill them?" Ginny asked to recap and looked rather crestfallen when Snape simply nodded.

"I'm going to have to talk to him if we're going to get anything done, aren't I?" Harry asked. As much as he didn't want to have to deal with the man, he knew that he needed the information and he would have to be mature about the situation.

"Since he put the ring on, how long does he have?" Dean asked. No one wanted to think that the old man might have just signed his own death warrant, but the issue had to be addressed.

"I'm not sure, but not very long. He is not very strong and I don't think that there is much more that I can do for him."

"This is real, isn't it? This war is real?" Ginny whispered. It was a rhetorical question, but it sent a chill through the rest of the room. While they had been training for what seemed like years for this war, it had never seemed more real than in that moment.

"We're going to have to start our own research and up the level of spells we're teaching to the D.A." Hermione took out a fresh piece of parchment and started to take down notes on things that needed to be done.

"I will be there to start teaching potions."

"Good, I'm sure that will go over well." Ron whispered under his breath and Ginny tossed a pillow at his head. "Sorry." He grumbled, averting his eyes. The others seemed to be more open minded about him joining the team, Snape simply ignored the red-head.

"As much as I would love to spend the rest of my day with you lot, I have important things to handle." Snape took his leave looking less annoyed than when he arrived, but the stress lines were still obvious on his face.

"Is he going to be okay?" Harry asked, looking worriedly at Draco.

"I'm not sure, but I think I should go make sure." Draco sighed. "I'll be back later, don't worry about it okay?" Draco kissed Harry gently on the lips and Harry smiled back.

"Just make sure he's okay." Harry smiled. Everyone said goodbye to the blond as he headed out the door to track down his moody godfather.

Just as Draco had predicted the man in question was in his private labs, making potions to ease his mind. Draco recognized the batch to be a simple pepper-up that he would make monthly for Madame Pomfrey to stock the Hospital Wing. Seeing his godfather work and seem so at peace made flashbacks of his childhood crop up in Draco's mind and he quickly shed his outer robe and moved into the room to gather more ingredients and start to help Snape.

Snape had seen Draco come in and while the potion he was working on was so simple that even the first years could do it properly, he was a potions master for a reason and he hadn't risked taking his eyes off his work to greet the boy. He knew that Draco would understand however and was pleased to see the boy start to gather more ingredients and start up a batch of his own. Draco set up his own working station and began the prepping stages for the potion before putting a cauldron on and adjusting the temperature.

"I thought you would be spending your day with you friends. You shouldn't have come down on your own, you could have been hurt."

"I'm fine, I took the shortcuts to get down here so I figured I wouldn't see anyone along the way. I came down to make sure that you are okay. You had Harry and I worried." Draco smiled at the man that he considered his father genuinely and Snape knew that he could no longer be annoyed with the boy.

"I'm fine, Dragon, just stressed." The old childhood nickname make Draco smile even wider. It had been ages since anyone had called him that, though the only other person who used to was his mom.

"I know that I'm like your child, but you know that you can talk to me right? Even if you can't tell me everything, you can still let me know some of what is going on, it might help."

Snape made sure that his and Draco's potions were stable before putting everything down to face the boy. It seemed very sudden to Snape, but when looked at Draco he no longer saw a child, but an adult, albite a young one, who was strong, brave, and so much more loving than his parent's poor upbringing could take credit for. His heart swelled with pride then because he realized that for the first time Draco was coming to him and showing that he was maturing. He realized that Snape was hurting too and while Draco would always be able to tell the man everything, the man had very little people that he could turn to. Draco was starting to grow out of the childish notion that all young people have in which their problems are completely consuming and they are not able to realize that there are other people who need someone to support them as well. For the first time, Draco was proving to Snape that he was becoming a man. He could not hide the silent tears that started to fall from his eyes.

"I am so proud of you, son." Snape pulled the boy into a strong hug making Draco gasp in surprise. He had never once in his life heard his father say those words to him, he had long since abandoned hope of hearing them from the man at all when he started to realize just how twisted he was. With Snape, Draco understood that he too came from a dysfunctional family and while he might always be proud of Draco, he was terrible at expressing emotions, so hearing the words from him was just as much a sign of maturity for Draco as his caring words where for Draco.

"Thanks, dad." Draco smiled, pulling back to see a soft smile on Snape's face.

The tender moment was short lived, however, when Snape pulled back entirely, hissing in pain. His right hand immediately went to his arm and his eyes widened in shock.

"He's calling you?" Draco asked worried and Snape nodded. "But I thought he hadn't called you since the school year started."

"He hasn't. This must be important. I've got to go, just finish the potions and get back to your dorm safe. Lock and ward the room after I leave and send for Harry to get you when you're done."

"No, you can't go! What if it's a trap, I can't lose you, Sev!" Draco cried, holding onto Snape's robes like a child.

"I'm sorry, Dragon, but I have to go. If I can save my position as a spy, then I must take the chance. I will come back and find you as soon as I get back. Also send word to Dumbledore." Snape gently pulled Draco's hands off his robes and summoned his Death Eater robes and mask.

"Just be careful." Draco whimpered and Snape nodded, hating to leave Draco in such a state.

"Remember, lock and ward. I will come find you tonight my Dragon." With a flare of his cape, Snape was out the door before Draco could protest more and the blond erected the wards and locked the room, staring at the cold wood scared out of his mind. He made quick work of finishing the potions, though he made sure to make them all right. The brewing gave him enough time to calm down and when he was finished he stored them all away and called for Harry via his patronus. Seeing the majestic panther prance off to get his lover also made Draco feel a bit better and while he waited for the Gryffindor, he penned a short letter to the Headmaster which he sent through the floo.

* * *

The fog surrounding Malfoy Manor sent a chill down Snape's spine. He resisted the urge to pull his robes closer to his body, it would be seen as a weakness and the last thing that he needed was to add more fuel to the fire. As he made his way from the ornate gates to the large front doors, he had little time to admire the gardens, though he did notice that they did not look as lush as usual. _Narcissa hasn't been keeping up on her beloved garden, that does not bode well._

There was no sign of anyone in the front foyer and Snape took his time while making his way further into the house. The normal portraits were empty and the plain black canvases gave the man the creeps. The doors to the drawing room were closed tight and he took an extra second to collect his thoughts and then push them to the back of his mind, behind the many walls and barriers he kept in place for just such occasions. With a flick of his wand, Snape opened the doors, the chill that emanated from the room made his robes flow around him easily as he walked into the center of the room. All of the most trusted death eaters were already waiting in a circle around the Dark Lord. Because they were in the Manor, their masks were removed and Snape spelled his away, his cold eyes surveying the room, before following on his master's. He averted his eyes at the last second in a sign of respect and fell into a very low, respectful bow.

"Rise, Severus." The hissed words sounded like nails on a chalkboard and Snape easily hid his grimace, though not many others were quick enough to hide their own.

"My Lord." Snape addressed the snake-like man with a hint of admiration in his voice. It wasn't the first time in the evil wizards presence that the idea of running away to be a paid actor crossed his mind. Hell he would be paid millions for the skilled shows he could put on. Pushing the agitated thoughts aside, Snape cleared his mind except for the feelings of pure hatred and loathing for all things Harry Potter and the Light. When he met the Dark Lord's eyes he felt the man probe around in his mind and he let him.

"What news do you have for us, Severus." Pleased that the Dark Lord seemed to not have found anything incriminating in his mind, Severus let a small sigh go before continuing.

"I regret that I have not been told much. It seems that Dumbledore is weary of telling me much anymore, he knows of course that you have not called me. He fears that you have found no use for me anymore and he too is rethinking his allies. I fear that if I do not report good things to him tonight he might have me cast from the school."

"Is this true, Nott? What have you heard from your son?" The man in question paled at being addressed, but stepped forward.

"Theo has told me that Snape and the Headmaster have seemed at odds, but he did tell me something far more troubling. He told me that Snape here seems to be taking a great interest in the traitor Malfoy and Potter even." Nott sneered and Snape held back the urge to roll his eyes.

"Is this true Severus? Have you been talking to the traitor and Potter?" The red eyes fell on the potions master and he leveled the gaze with a blank one of his own.

"This is true, My Lord-"

"See, he cannot be trusted!" Bellatrix spoke up for the first time since the meeting. Snape was rather surprised that it took her so long, since he was accustomed to her lack of self-restraint.

"If you would let me finish, Bellatrix, I was about explain my actions."

"Of course you were! Always with the reasons and the fancy words. What's to say you're not really Dumbledore's man? How are we to know that you aren't feeding everything we say here to the old coot!" The room suddenly seemed to roar to life. Everyone seemed to have something to say and from what he could hear, it was all against the spy.

"I am not Dumbledore's man." Snape said with such conviction that the whole room fell silent again. "I am trying to talk to Draco, but he doesn't trust me. I was hoping to gain his trust to get closer to Potter and figure out what the boy is up to. I know that they are planning something. The filthy Gryffindors that follow him around have been buzzing with hope and life ever since Potter and his gang started to disappear at night again. I think that they are still meeting like they did last year, if I can I hope to infiltrate the group and take them down. I can only do this if I gain their trust."

"Very intriguing, Severus. Do you think it can be done?" Voldemort asked and all of the other death eater's present were shocked into silence.

"Only if the attacks on the group are stopped."

"See? He's just trying to protect them!" Nott jumped in.

"Silence!" Voldemort roared and every in the room went stone silent. "How will you benefit from the attacks to stop?"

"If I can at least know who the the second person is then I can gain their trust by telling them." Snape reasoned and Voldemort seemed to look convinced.

"You are not sacrificing my daughter to screw us all over." Greengrass accused from the other side of Nott and Snape's brow raised in the classic Snape way that sent most students running away crying.

"So it's your daughter. Astoria, am I correct? Yes she must be the brains behind the attacks." Snape sneered at Nott, his eyes glinting in a taunting way that left the other man seething.

"You are correct, on both accounts, Severus. That is all for tonight, Severus please stay behind."

"But My Lord!" Bellatrix protested and many present winced.

"Do as I asked Bellatrix, or will you be joining your sister?" Voldemort asked. All eyes reflexively went to the shadowed corner just out of sight. Snape slowly followed their line of vision as to not seem to over eager. What he saw made his blood run cold. Narcissa was curled up on the dirty cot, all traces of her former glory completely stripped from her as was her clothing. She was vile and sad, and Snape felt his heart break for both her and Draco in that moment.

Carefully guarding his mind once more he looked to Voldemort, trying to gauge whether or not the man saw the change in his demeanor. It seemed that he still had some trust in the evil wizard, however, because he seemed to not notice Snape's reactions and his attention was focused on the cowering witch before him.

"No, My Lord, you are correct as always." Bellatrix said humbly and bowed graciously before her master.

"Good. Be gone with you, I wish to speak to Severus alone." The room cleared out quickly and soon Snape found himself alone in the room with Voldemort and the shell of the woman he considered to be his closest friend. Voldemort moved to a set of chairs, not even glancing at the cages as he motioned for Snape to join him. "Severus, despite what you might think, my trust in you has not wavered."

"I am relieved to hear this My Lord, I was beginning to worry, you know that I wish to be by your side completely, but I understand why this charade must be kept up."

"That is why I trust you to it alone. Tell me, how are things at the castle really? I cannot count on Nott for trustworthy information and no matter how smart the Greengrass girl is, she is still a woman. I want to hear it from you."

"Things are as they are be expected to be. Dumbledore is very on edge, though he is completely clueless to anything that is happening in his own school. Age is taking its toll and I think there has been talk of having him forced from the school."

"Good, then we can plant someone in that spot when it happens."

"Do you already have someone in mind, My Lord?"

"Why yes, you naturally." Voldemort said, though his eyes seemed cold as ever.

"Me, My Lord?" Snape was completely taken aback. He must really still be in the clear if Voldemort was trusting enough of him to allow him to take over such an important and powerful road.

"Of course, I need my most trusted man working the school for me. It is getting late and I wish to retire for the night. Make sure you keep me updated."

"Of course, My Lord." Snape stood first and bowed low.

"Do not worry what others might say," Voldemort said as a goodbye, moving from his seat and to the door, closing it soundlessly, leaving Snape alone with Narcissa and his own thoughts.

When he was sure that he was completely alone, Snape made his way to the cage in the corner. He was light on his feet so when he gently rattled the bars to see if he could loosen them he was not surprised to see the broken woman inside jump in fright. When she turned to face him, his heart broken even more. The once beautiful eyes of Narcissa Malfoy now stared back at him broken and lifeless.

"Cissa?" Snape asked, his voice breaking. How was he going to tell Draco?

"Don't, no, no, please-" Narcissa began to sob, her words mixing into sounds and Snape wanted to cry.

"Cissa, it's me, Severus. Cissa can you understand me?" But her cries just got more frequent and began to grow in volume. Slowly he backed away from the cage. All of the noise would draw attention and there was nothing that he could do for her then. It was obvious that her mind was starting to break under the immense pain that she went through. If the torture was kept up there was no doubt in Snape's mind that she would turn out just like the Longbottoms.

Snape left the Manor as quickly as he could without drawing attention to himself. It wasn't until he was safely on Hogwarts grounds that he let his walls completely drop and the bile that he had been keeping down finally came up. He wretched on the lawn of the school by the gate, leaning on the iron rods to keep his body up. When he finished emptying the contents of his stomach, he spelled the mess away and steadied himself. He knew that he had told Draco that he would go to them first, but there was no way he could face his Godson in that moment. Instead he pushed his tears further back and made his way up to the castle, the Headmaster's office his destination. It would be easier to report to the man first before talking to Draco. At least then he wouldn't have to leave the poor boy behind to give the report, he knew that he wouldn't be able to leave him just as much as the boy wouldn't have been able to let him go. He made the rest of the walk in silence, his mind blank. He wouldn't open up all of his emotions again until he knew that it was safe to do so. He stopped for a moment before the gargoyle statues to collect himself. The irony of the matter, the fact that he had done just the same before facing the most evil wizard of their time, was not lost on Snape. He gave the password and started to make his way up to meet his other puppet master, vowing to make everything right again for both his and Draco's sake, the second that he could manage.


	14. Chapter 14

Harry made his way through the halls of Hogwarts cautiously. He had received the patronus call from Draco not five minutes ago and he didn't want to keep the boy waiting. It was nearing dinner time so he knew that he might run into someone, but with Snape gone and off at the Manor, Harry's nerves were on edge and he did his best to keep to the shadows. As he started to turn the corner on the ground floor, before making it to the stairs he heard a slight noise behind him. Bracing himself, Harry was prepared this time when he heard Pansy's light voice in his ear.

"Potter, I thought I warned you to be careful." Harry felt the girl start to pull away, but he was too fast. His hand closed around her thin wrist before she could move away. Swiftly, he turned on his heel so he was facing the girl and pushed her into the nearby alcove, making sure that no one saw them.

"What do you want, Parkinson?" Harry whispered, his strong frame blocking her from escaping.

"Let go of me, Potter, I'm not going to run." The girl bit back, her eyes boring into Harry's. When the boy let go of her, she relaxed against the wall, eyeing the boy carefully. "You really care about him, don't you?"

"Changing the topic?" Harry responded with a question of his own, his hand going into his pocket to retrieve the note that Pansy slipped there. He kept his eyes on the girl, holding the parchment in front her vision. "Tell me about this, what was so important that you risked being seen in broad daylight?"

"I know who the second person is. I came to warn you." Harry watched the girl carefully, coming to a decision quickly.

"Do you know where Draco and Blaise have been staying all this time? The exact location?"

"Changing the topic again?" Pansy raised her brow, not sure where he was taking this, but willing to go along. "Yes, I know the place."

"There is an alcove just like this just outside the portrait. Wait for us there. We will be by in ten minutes."

"Why are you trusting me?" Pansy asked, her stance no longer relaxed, but guarded.

"Draco trusts you, that's going to have to be enough for me. Just be careful, don't get caught."

"I won't." The conviction in the girl's eyes was enough for Harry and with a quick nod, he was gone, leaving her alone to collect herself before making the journey up to dangerous territory for Slytherin.

It only took Harry another minute to make it down to the private lab that Draco was brewing in. He knocked gently, focusing enough to detect slight noises inside.

"It's me, love. You ready to go?" The door unlocked and Harry felt the wards drop. Draco opened the door, his tired and worried eyes meeting Harry's. "What's wrong?"

"I'm just worried about Sev." Draco sighed, moving into the hall and closing the door behind him. He locked the lab again and activated the normal level of wards. Taking Harry's hand, they began to make their way to their rooms, both boys taking the time to be hyper aware of their surroundings.

"I'm sure he will be fine," Harry spoke when they made it back on the ground level. He didn't really know if he believed himself, but for Draco's sake he stood his ground. "Parkinson came to talk to me again."

"Yeah? She didn't cause any trouble I hope." Draco eyed his lover wearily. He knew that he could trust her, she was one of his longest and dearest friends, and he knew that Harry would give her a fair shot, but the thought of the two of them talking alone made him feel a little uneasy.

"No, she said that she had more information, said that she knew who the second person is."

"Well, who is she?" Draco asked, eyes wide, breath held, waiting for the coveted information.

"I'm not sure. I sent her to a safe spot outside the rooms. I figure we should have this conversation somewhere more secure."

"Do you trust her?" Draco whispered looking to his lover, confusion and hope mixed in his silver-grey eyes.

"Do you?" Harry asked. They were coming up to the hall where their rooms where, so Harry stopped them, pulling Draco to the side, into his arms.

"I do, I know that everyone else is skeptical and I understand why, but I've known her since we were children and know I can trust her." Draco reasoned, looking up at Harry as if to plead his case.

"Then I trust her too." Harry smiled, leaning down to kiss his lover gently on the lips and Draco moaned into it. Harry pulled away before they could go to far, starting off for their rooms once more. When they passed the alcove that Harry knew Pansy was in, Harry stopped again. "You can come out now, Parkinson."

Pansy slipped out from behind the suit of armor with ease. The hall was darker than most, there were very few lit candles in the area because it was seldom used, but the two boys could still make out the small smirk on her face. She moved closer to them and Draco reflexively let go of Harry's hand to pull the girl into a tight hug.

"Oh good, someone else I have to share you with." Harry jokingly rolled his eyes.

"And I share you with Gin, it's only fair." Draco shot back and allowed Pansy to keep his arm around his waist, sticking his tongue out at his boyfriend.

"As cute as this is, shouldn't we be heading inside, we wouldn't want to bump into anyone  unsavory ." Pansy said, bring them back to the moment, reminding Harry just how dangerous the halls were.

"She's right." Harry turned, hissing the password to Salazar, who had been watching their interaction with interest.

" Shall I warn them, Harry? " Salazar asked, nodding toward Pansy. She was a snake, one of his, so he knew that being weary was more than just a precaution, it was a necessity.

" Yes, thank you Sal ." Harry hissed back, bowing to the man in thanks. The portrait opened just as Salazar was stepping out of his frame, presumably into the one above the fireplace where his lover was.

"It's a wonder he wasn't put into Slytherin." Pansy said offhandedly to Draco, though Harry still heard her with his heightened hearing.

"The hat tried to, but I begged to be put in a different house." This was the first time that Harry had ever admitted this to anyone, so he was not surprised to see their doubtful faces. It looked like Pansy was about to protest, but Draco's hand on her arm stopped her.

"Later." He mouthed to the girl and she nodded. Harry couldn't see the interaction because he was walking in front of them, but he assumed that was how it happened because of how well he knew Draco.

When they made it fully into the common room it was obvious that everyone had since scattered since Draco had left them earlier that morning. Hermione was reading by the fire, Ron asleep in her lap taking over the rest of the couch. They had to assume that Blaise and Ginny were in the boy's room, Luna, Neville, Seamus, and Dean were nowhere in sight. Hermione looked up as soon as they entered the room completely, her eyes trained on the person behind Harry that she would not quite see.

"You want me to call the others?" It wasn't really a question, but Harry nodded anyways. Sighing, Hermione took out her coin, using the newest spell she had created for it to call only the core members to their common room. "Who is it?"

Harry stepped aside and Draco moved up, so Pansy was standing in between them, but still behind them enough for protection. Ron had woken up by this point and he was regarding the newest Slytherin oddly, though he seemed to still be half asleep and had yet to say anything. Blaise and Ginny were coming down the stairs just at that moment as well and they stopped midway, also staring at the girl, not sure what to make of her sudden appearance. Another few tense moments passed before Hermione cleared her throat, ending the silence.

"Are we going to be wanting tea or liquor for this meeting?"

"You know us too well." Harry smiled at the girl, the tension in the room dropped immensely and Hermione rolled her eyes.

"Honestly, the rate in which you go through butter beer-" She was mumbling under her breath, but they all heard her causing all the boys to laugh and Hermione to roll her eyes. Ginny went off to the small kitchenette with Hermione to help the girl prepare snacks and drinks. Blaise moved to the large table that Seamus and others had been doing their homework on earlier, clearing it by hand in order to sort out whose work was whose, placing them in neat piles on one of the smaller desks against the wall.

"We're just going to wait for the others to show up first, if you want to have a seat." Harry said to Pansy, indicating the chairs around the large oak table. "Draco and Ron can fill you in on what we have so far, if you could wait for everyone else to start discussing what we know about the attackers, I would really appreciate it."

Draco watched Ron carefully as Pansy took a seat at the table. He knew that Harry had purposely made it so that Ron was forced to interact with the girl. The sooner they got over any animosity, the faster they could move on with the important business at hand. Ginny and Hermione were sure to have their own questions, but they were at least smart enough to wait and keep their thoughts to themselves. Draco wondered if the other four who had yet to arrive would be a problem, but he doubted it. They generally took Harry's lead.

"I'm not going to bite, you know." Pansy rolled her eyes at the way the redhead was inching around her carefully. Instead of responding, he simply glared at her as if to say that he didn't believe her.

"Here, do you want butterbeer or pumpkin juice?" Hermione stepped between them, defusing the situation. She had a tray of drinks in her hand and she was putting them in the center of the table. Ginny was on the other side of the table with snacks that they had just prepared.

"Butter beer, thanks." Pansy took the proffered drink, sipping it slowly to allow the burn trail down her throat and negate the small prickle of nerves that were building in her stomach. She trusted Blaise and Draco to keep her safe, and for some reason she trusted Harry as well, despite barely knowing him, but the others made her feel more nervous than she would have likely admitted.

Before another fight could break out, the other four entered the common room. All eyes landed on them and in turn the four stared at the stranger sitting at the table. Quickly surveying the situation, Neville and Luna moved right for the kitchen to help Ginny and Hermione, adopting their silent acceptance while Seamus and Dean went to stand awkwardly with Ron, trying to sort out the situation in their heads.

"Honestly, sit down, we're never going to get anything done with you lot acting like this." Ginny rolled her eyes, taking the seat right next to Pansy. "Look, I'm not saying we're suddenly best friends, but if Harry and Draco trust you then that is good enough for me, don't let those idiots bother you." Ginny threw an annoyed look at her brother, Dean and Seamus.

"Th-thank you." Pansy looked at the younger girl stunned. Ginny simply smile back, turning to Luna who sat on her other side and struck up a conversation with her. Nothing more was said as the many members of the Order began to bustle about, getting various papers, quills, and inkwells until they were finally all situated. Harry stayed standing at the head of the table, Draco to his right and Hermione to his left. When he was sure that everyone was ready, he cleared his throat to get their attention.

"Okay I know that this was a really rushed meeting, I hope I didn't take anyone from something very important. We are going to try to keep this as quick and simple as we can so unless you have something constructive to say, please wait until we're done." He stopped to catch the eye of every single person around the table first to insure that he had just snipped any danger in the bud. When everyone nodded back at him, Harry continued. "Pansy is here because she has information on Ginny's second attacker. If you want to take over, feel free." Harry nodded toward the girl and all eyes fell on her.

"I've been trying to figure out what Nott has been up to since the beginning of the school year. I knew that with Blaise and Draco gone things were going to change in Slytherin, but I wasn't prepared for just how much. The thing that you have to understand is that in our house, things are very dependent on who you are, who you talk to and where your family ranks in pureblood society. Before Draco defected, as they have been calling it, he was the leader, even when we were younger. Because he and Blaise were so close from the beginning Blaise became what we referred to as second in command. I was one of the few who was also very close to them, and Crabbe and Goyle were simply bodyguards. Nott was always very jealous of Draco, if it weren't for him, then he would be in control. When they left, my loyalties were put into questioning and I was outcasted by the whole house. Crabbe and Goyle simply declared loyalty to Nott to avoid any problems so I was left alone.

"I wanted to come to you guys immediately, but I realized that while I was outcasted they weren't going to do anything to me so I figured I should stick around for a bit to see what they were going to do. It was immediately obvious that something was going on. Everyone in the house was weary to follow Nott at first. Many were still unsure if Draco was gone for good and they were too afraid to defy a Malfoy. There were a few that took too well to him, however, and I knew that something was going to happen. One of them was Astoria Greengrass."

"I knew it." Draco whispered under his breath and Blaise snorted in agreement.

"Who?" Ginny asked and the others nodded, just as confused.

"Astoria Greengrass is the younger sister of Daphne Greengrass, she's a year younger than you, Gin." Blaise took over the conversation. "She was meant to be betrothed to Draco."

"Well that was until I told my parents that I was gay and  defected as our lovely housemates have named it." Draco rolled his eyes. "Why is she working with Nott? Does she think that since his family is the next most important with a son near her age she can shack up with him? I may have never liked her, but I've always thought better of her than that."

"No, actually she is under the impression that you lied about being gay and are actually dating Ginny."

"What?" Pretty much every person in the room asked in unison, save Pansy and Luna, the latter looking very nonplussed and rather as if she had been expecting as much.

"Honestly I thought that was pretty obvious, she and Draco are always so close in the halls, if I hadn't known better I would have warned Blaise and Harry that their significant others were cheating on them." Everyone at the table stared at Luna dumbfounded. "What?"

"Sometimes, Luna, you really worry me." Ron said under his breath, causing everyone but the Ravenclaw to laugh. It seemed to ease the tension that had still been present in the room, and Pansy actually smiled, which only helped.

"So she's been attacking me because she thinks that I'm with him?" Ginny asked and Pansy nodded to confirm. "To what end? What's the point?"

"That's where it gets troubling. I'm pretty sure they're working for He Who Must Not Be Named."

"We use his name here-" Dean started to say, but Hermione cut him off.

"Fear of the name only causes fear of the thing itself." She said smartly.

"Yeah, exactly, but how can you be sure, that's a pretty big accusation." Seamus piped up.

"Well I overheard them talking about him using the term the Dark Lord and Nott looked pretty worried, but Astoria didn't seem very bothered." Pansy said smoothly, not using either name. She wouldn't seem a coward in front of all the Gryffindors, but she also wasn't about to say the evil wizard’s name.

"That girl really was always an airhead." Draco rolled his eyes.

"Yes well, she might be a bit flighty, but I know for a fact that she was the one who set up all the traps for Ginny. It seems that dear old Daphne has been telling her stories about our first and second years, so I suppose that's why she was trying to mimic them, maybe to make you think that it was an older student. I'm not sure, but I'm pretty sure that we have a bigger problem on our hands."

"Do you think you can get us more information? I mean I know that they must be treating you terribly there, but if you can stick around maybe even for a little bit more than we will be able to have a better idea of what they are up to and maybe even come up with a plan to stop them." Ginny suggested.

"I can try, but no promises, I honestly don't know how they will react to me."

"Just be safe, okay? If you ever need it you can come here if you need a place to hide out. I'll make sure that Sal and Godric let you in without any problems."

"Okay, well I really don't have much else to tell."

"That's fine, with this information maybe we can help you fish out more information." Hermione reassured her. "Maybe Draco and Ginny can even play up that they are together to get Astoria to react."

"That would put them in even more danger!" Ron protested, but Ginny and Draco only nodded gravely.

"We know that, Ron, but it might be for the best." Ginny said to keep her overprotective brother from trying to fight her on it. "We're just going to have to do what we can."

There was a moment of complete silence throughout the common room while everyone processed the information. Draco and Ginny were starting determinately across the table at each other while Harry and Blaise watched their lovers worriedly. Before another conversation could pick up, the door to the rooms slammed open and all eyes flew to the door as each of them drew their wands. Snape stood in the door looking more pale than ever, tear streaks visible by the flickering fire.

"Sev?" Draco stood up instantly and was in his Godfather's arms before anyone else could react. The older man slumped forward as soon as the blond's arms encircled him. Despite his small stature, Draco easily supported the man, doing his best to comfort him while trying to get him to talk about what happened. Harry stood too, turning to the group, his voice very low.

"I think it's best we call this meeting, Blaise could you go with them to the Tower for a bit? I think they're going to need some time."

The room vacated quickly. Ron, Seamus, and Dean left quickly, as they had no idea how to react to their most hated potions professor sobbing like a child. Luna and Hermione were not far behind, promising to help Harry clean up later, throwing worried looks back at the man on their way out. Blaise and Ginny hung back long enough to say goodbye, asking that Harry let them know when they could come back. Pansy lingered for just a moment longer, looking as if she wanted to stay, but thought better of it. By the time everyone was gone, Draco had moved with Severus to the couch. Even Sal and Godric went back to the hallway and Harry stood near the door, unsure if he should stay.

"It's okay." Draco whispered, rubbing circles on the man's back, though his eyes were locked with Harry's. The boys shared a look before Harry joined them, sitting behind Draco, not sure how to act. He and Snape were closer than they had ever been, but this was something that he wasn't sure the man would be too keen on Harry seeing. He had invaded the man's personal space once before and he hadn't been too happy then. He only hoped that this time it would be different.

"Sev, what's wrong, you need to tell me what happened." Draco said quietly and the man finally pulled away, his red-rimmed eyes nearly causing the two boys before him to cry as well.

"Draco, my son, I am so sorry." Severus' voice cracked several times, it was obvious from the raw sound that he had been crying for a while before he had made it to their rooms.

"About what, what's wrong?" Draco asked again though this time his voice was bordering on pleading. Harry gently wrapped an arm around the boy from behind in an attempt to calm him.

"When I was at the meeting, I saw your mother-" His voice broke again and he seemed to be completely taken over by another fit of tears. Draco paled his lean body shaking in Harry's strong arms.

"What happened, Sev. What happened to her?" The whisper was so low that even though they were so close, Harry nearly missed it.

"Voldemort is torturing her with the cruciatus and possibly other curses." Draco's face seemed to have lost all of its blood. The shaking turned into outright trembling as tears started to fall from his eyes as well. Gently Harry let go of the blond, allowing him to fall forward onto his godfather. He wanted so desperately to help, but he knew that there was nothing that he could do. It broke Harry's heart to see how much pain both men were in.

"Is she going to be okay?"

"I don't know." Snape's tears had slowed considerably when Draco started to cry. It was if his parenting instincts had kicked in and he knew that he would have to put his own grief aside long enough to take care of Draco. "I'm going to try to get her back, Dragon, I promise." Snape said, rocking them back and forth. "I promise."

The two were so wrapped up in each other that when Harry stood, they didn't even notice. As much as the boy wanted to be there to help, he could tell that he would only get in the way. Slowly he walked away from the two, holding in his own tears. They needed space and Harry knew better than most what it felt like to lose everything and need the time and space to deal with it. Casting one last look at the two, he slipped out of the room and made his way toward the Tower. The draft of the castle made Harry pull his robes closer, to his body. He knew part of the reason that he was shaking was because of what he had just heard and the state that he had left his lover in and he instantly felt horrible. Why had he just done that? What kind of person was he for leaving the man he loved behind when he clearly was falling apart? Harry was so wrapped up in his own thoughts that he didn't even notice that there were two other people in the hallway, watching his every move carefully.

Just as Harry was about to turn around to go back toward his rooms, he was struck from behind by a strong hex. Pulling himself from his thoughts, Harry pulled out his wand and gripped it tight, turning to face the hooded Slytherin who dared to attack him in the middle of the night. Thinking quickly, Harry fell into an easy dueling stance, striking back with a pretty nasty hex of his own. Because he didn't even need his wand, the use of the tool only made his hex stronger and it threw his attacker back and onto their feet. As he did his best to advance on them, another spell flew at him from behind again.

" Protego! " Throwing up a quick shield, Harry did his best to assess the situation in the few seconds that he had just bought himself. He was pretty sure that he knew who his attackers were, which meant that it had been Nott who he knocked over and the Greengrass girl who had just attacked him from behind.

" Crucio! " The female assailant cried, surprising Harry enough to make his shield weaken. If Pansy was right, then it was a fourteen year old who had just set that spell at him, a feat that was very scary when considering the fact that she was much too young to have so much anger and hatred.

Nott was on his feet again at this point and Harry had to turn to face him, knowing that the young girl would be taking another second to regroup from using such a powerful spell and that gave him enough time to take care of Nott. The two circled quickly, just as Harry had taught his students in their last meeting. He briefly wondered if showing them the memory of this later would be a good teaching tool before throwing himself back into the fight. In the short time that it took for Astoria to come back into the fight, Harry had forced Nott to stand between them, Harry only hopped that the crazy girl would not risk hurting her own classmate. Nott seemed to be one for the dramatics so when he raised his wand high in order to strike, Harry was ready, quickly putting up a shield before shooting a curse of his own.

Loud footsteps came from behind and Harry didn't have a second to spare to see who had joined them. It seemed that whomever they were, however, that they were on his side because when Nott's hood fell off, the boy looked both at Harry and the stranger with pure hatred in his eyes. Nott moved and Harry did his best to keep up with him, just as he caught a glimpse of blonde hair. Before he could check to see just who it was, Nott fired off another round of curses and Harry had to focus back on his own duel. Everything else in the world fell away to the boy as he continued to duel Nott. He didn't even hear the duel going on between him, though he had to assume that whoever had come to his rescue could hold their own against the crazy girl. He wondered for a moment if it could have been Draco that joined him, it had been a streak of platinum blonde hair that he had seen briefly, but he had no time to spare on such thoughts. The two dueling were behind him and Nott seemed determined to keep him distracted.

" Petrificus Totalus! " Harry cried, striking down Nott. He turned to see just who had come to help him in time to hear the cruciatus belt from Astoria's lips. Harry's eyes locked with his ally just in time to see them crumple to the ground, screaming in pain.

"NO!"


	15. Chapter 15

Harry watched in unmasked horror as Luna fell to the ground, her shout echoing off the stone walls. He ran toward her, there was a barrier around the two girls, stopping him from moving any further. Summoning all of his remaining strength, Harry broke down the magical shield, moving close enough to level the still hooded figure with his wand.

"Let her go, Astoria, it's me you want." Harry's voice was stronger than he felt, giving him a commanding air that made the girl hesitate.

"Stay back Potter, I'll curse her again." If Harry hadn't known how old the girl was, he would have sworn that the harsh, cruel tone of her voice made her seem a lot older.

"It's okay, Harry, I'm fine." Luna stood on shaking legs. "Just go and get help, don't worry about me."

"Don't worry about you? You should have been a Gryffindor for all your foolishness!" Astoria laughed, her wand aimed and ready. " _Crucio!_ "

This time Luna managed to stay standing, her jaw set and her eyes closed, but she did not fall. Astoria's distraction by this phenomenon gave Harry enough time to act without her noticing. Praying to whomever was listening that Luna would be alright when the spell broke, Harry cast another body binding curse, this time at the girl. Astoria went stiff as a board as soon as the spell hit her, and she fell back onto the floor with a loud thud. Thanks to his quick reflexes, Harry was able to catch Luna before she fell so that when loud footsteps seemed to be coming down the hall from behind them, Harry was not able to protect them with his wand. No longer caring who saw the extent of his power, Harry erected a strong shield spell around them, waiting for the worst.

"Harry!" Draco ran to his lover's side and instantly Harry's shields went down. Draco's eyes were still red and puffy, but they held only concern for Harry and the blonde in his arms. "Are you okay? Is she okay? I can't believe they would attack you in the like this in the open. Merlin, I can't believe-" Draco's words came out rushed and Harry could hardly understand him.

"Slow down, we're both okay." Harry reassured and Luna nodded slowly from her place still in Harry's arms.

"Harry take Miss Lovegood to the Hospital Wing, I will take care of these two." Snape intoned from behind them as he levitated Nott first than Astoria. "I will have to wipe their memories and alter them so they don't report me to the Dark Lord, but I will be sure to check on you three there so don't leave."

With Draco's help, Harry was able to stand with Luna in between them so they could support her properly. Carefully they made their way through the dark halls in relative silence. When they reached the large wooden doors, Harry supported all of Luna's weight and Draco pushed open the heavy doors.

"Who could be getting up and into trouble this late in the night." Harry could hear Madame Pomfrey mumbling from the other side of the door and he had to do his best to keep the smile from surfacing on his face.

"It's us, Madame Pomfrey, but I promise that we didn't start it this time."

"Well of course not Mr. Potter, you never do." The older mediwitch was able to keep herself from rolling her eyes only because she was a professional woman. "Put Miss Lovegood on the bed next to yours you and Mr. Malfoy can sit and wait on your bed. Who is going to come down and collect you after?"

"Professor Snape, but I think he will be a while, he has to deal with the students who did this to them." Draco said, his voice bitter at the mention of the attackers.

"Oh dear, will I be needing to treat them as well? I know you were just trying to defend yourselves, but if would be nice if you could try not to knock them around as much. Honestly I don't need any more students to keep me busy."

"I think Professor Snape has it handled. Is Luna going to be okay?" Harry asked as the witch continued to fuss over the blonde.

"I told you I was fine before, Harry." Luna smiled, the light finally returning to her eyes. "Just a bit shaken up, but I'm fine."

"Luna, you were hit with the cruciatus, how were you not in more pain?"

"I'm not sure, it hurt at first, but then I just focused and made it stop." Before Harry could press for more information, Snape came bounding into the room.

"Are they all set, Poppy?" His eyes swept over the three before landing on the woman.

"Yes, they all seem to be fine, but what's going on, Severus?"

"I don't have a lot of time to explain. Dumbledore is taking care of the two students who attacked them. I have to move these three back to Mr. Malfoy's dorms and retrieve Miss Parkinson from Slytherin. It is no longer safe for her there. Miss Lovegood you might want to move in as well. I'm sure you dorm is safe, but moving to and from them might not be. It is up to you."

"I think I would prefer to be with Harry and Draco if that is okay."

"That is fine I will have a house elf send for your things. Are they clear to go, then?"

"Yes, but honestly Severus, are you sure this is all necessary?"

"Unfortunately." The man confirmed, his expression grim. He motioned for the three to follow him and they did so without questioning. The walk back to their rooms was quiet and Harry had enough time to think over their situation properly. After watching Luna's bravery and her ability to fight off the cruciatus curse Harry knew that she would be his first choice to be the secret keeper for the new safe house. With that in mind, he would have to remember to ask Severus to set up that meeting with Bill as soon as possible.

The three made it back to the rooms fine and Severus helped set up a cot for Luna for the night. Blaise and Ginny were already asleep in their rooms and Draco and Harry didn't much feel like bothering them. With the promise to bring Pansy in and the firm command to not wait up, Severus left and Draco and Harry went to bed, both falling into a fitful sleep.

* * *

Sunday morning did little to lift anyone's mood. Harry woke before Draco, pulling the blond closer to himself, spooning up to him from behind. Despite moving him, Draco's breath was still even and Harry allowed himself a couple of minutes of comfort before disentangling himself. Kissing the blond on the forehead lightly, Harry took a quick shower hoping that the hot water would loosen the tension in his body and be the good start to his day that he really needed. By the time he made it to the kitchenette, he found breakfast and coffee already set for him and Draco, though the boy was still in bed. Pansy and Ginny were sitting at the small table while Blaise and Luna were sitting by the fire, both seemingly lost in thought.

"Severus asked me to give this to you last night. He said that it could wait until morning." Pansy handed Harry a rolled up scroll.

"Thank you. Did you move in okay? I'll be sure to make a room for you and Luna today so you don't have to worry about having personal space."

"It was fine, I was lucky to miss any confrontation, I heard that you weren't. I'm sorry." Pansy said, looking over at Luna who was still lost in her own thoughts with a look of remorse.

"You don't need to be." Harry smiled genuinely, reaching for his mug while unrolling the scroll in the air. He skimmed it quickly, his eyes flying across the lines.

"You can do wandless and wordless magic?" Pansy asked and Harry realized that he had a lot to update her and Snape on.

"I can, but I promise I'll explain everything to you and Severus when I can, it seems I have business to attend to, today. Luna, are you free?" Harry reread the letter once more as he asked her. It seemed that Snape had heard back from Bill and the man was willing to meet up with him that day at noon at Gringotts. It also seemed that Snape had been able to get him permission to leave the castle by Dumbledore himself, he only hoped that he would be able to get Luna permission too.

"Of course, where are we going?" The girl asked, joining them at the table and reaching out for the tea pot, filling her mug again.

"To London, there is something I need to take care of and I need your help." Harry pocketed the letter without another word. "Dress warmly, we're leaving in an hour."

After finishing his breakfast, waking up Draco, and dressing in plain black robes, Harry and Luna made their way to Snape's office. They used the open floo connection to get to the Leaky Cauldron and made their way from there.

" _Remember, keep your head down. Use your magical aura to keep people away if you have to. And yes, I noticed that last night, we will talk later._ " Snape's parting words were still ringing in Harry's ears as they made their way through the quiet streets of Wizarding London. It was very disconcerting to see a place normally so full of life be completely desolate. Harry pulled his hood down further, upping his magic like Snape had suggested. Luna moved closer to Harry instinctively, and the few sketchy peddlers still on the streets stayed clear of them. They made it to Gringotts without incident and as they made their way to the counter, Harry reeled in his magic and dropped his hood, though he motioned to Luna to keep hers on.

"I am here to see Bill Weasley." Harry's voice rang clear through the room and all eyes fell on him.

"Do you have an appointment?" The goblin asked, his bored tone meant to show indifference, but his face was written with curiosity.

"I do. My name is H. J. Potter." This time his voice was just above a whisper. Though it might have seemed like he had done this because he wanted to keep his identity a secret, the goblin saw it for the threat that it was.

"I know who you are." The goblin spit back, looking through the large book for the appointment in question.

"And I you, Griphook." The goblin looked up startled, not sure how to respond. "I am not like most wizards, now is Bill ready to see us?"

"There is only your name listed, not your friend's."

"Well that can be ignored, can it not?" With a meaningful look, Harry waited for the creature before him to nod. "Good. Is there a more private place that we can wait?"

"Right this way." They followed the goblin into a back office away from the prying eyes of the main tellers and floor managers. They stopped in front of a door that was tall enough for an average human and when they entered it was obvious that it was Bill's office that they were shown to. Many photos of the Weasley family were placed around the room as well as a few pictures of the man and his fiancé Fleur. "He will be back shortly, Mr. Potter." Griphook nodded both to Harry and then to Luna. When the door was shut firmly, Luna let her hood drop.

"Sorry to keep you waiting, Harry." Bill said as he rushed into his office. He paused for a moment to stare at Luna and then Harry again. "I didn't know that you'd be bringing Luna." He looked down to the two mugs on his tray. "Sorry, do you want tea as well? I can go get another mug if-"

"It's okay, Bill. We're in a bit of a rush, if you don't mind. I don't need any tea anyways." Harry reassured, smiling at the affronted look that Bill gave him. He really was Mrs. Weasley's son.

"Well then, what can I help you with? Snape said that it was something about the Order, but I haven't heard from Dumbledore at all. Is everything okay? I got the impression that I was meant to keep this meeting a secret so I haven't told anyone."

"Good. It is meant to be a secret, we are on Order business, but not for Dumbledore."

"So what is it that I can do for you?" Bill asked finally getting to business. His face changed dramatically as he sat before them ready to listen to Harry, something that boy was very glad for. As much as he loved Bill and wished that he had more time to catch up with the man, this was far more important and they really had very little time to work with.

"First I need you to understand that what we are doing is against Dumbledore's orders. Furthermore, it is imperative that only we know about it. There is going to be a point where I am going to have to obliviate you, I know that this is something very serious that I am asking you so I need you to understand exactly what you are getting yourself in to."

The room was silent for a long moment while Bill thought over his answer carefully. It was obvious that he wanted to ask Harry more questions, but he knew better, the boy would not budge. While he continued to mull over his options, Harry's face stayed blank, conveying nothing about his own feelings on the situation. Internally, the boy was more than a little worried that Bill would outright refuse them, but a bigger part of him was more worried for the safety of his friends and it was the thought of them that made him hold it together.

"Alright. I trust you. What do you need me to do?" Harry let out the breath that he didn't realize he was holding before he continued.

"I need to purchase a plot of land anonymously. It needs to be sizable and something that can be hidden by the fidelius charm."

"I think we will be able to do that, you certainly have the money, let me go gather a few properties and the memories of their location so you can review them all. If you decide to purchase the land then the memory will be destroyed and you can wipe my memory of its location, but not of the document being drawn. You can make it so I can't remember it was you who bought it, but if I can't remember that it was purchased we could run into some problems."

"Okay, that sounds reasonable." So with an agreement settled, Bill retrieved the memories and Harry and Luna poured over them until they were able to decide on a five acre plot of land in Llangadwaladr in North Wales.

The rest was completed very quickly. The documents did not take long to sign and Harry made very quick work of Bill's memory. By the time Harry and Luna apparated to the new home of the Order it was only mid afternoon.

"I know I've just been following your lead all morning, Harry, but what is it you need from me?" Luna asked finally as Harry started to erect a fence around the land that now belonged to him.

"I need you to be the secret keeper."

"Me? Wouldn't it make more sense for it to be you?"

"No because if I get captured I don't want them to have any way to get the information from me. I might be powerful, but I'm not a fool. You're very strong Luna, and after last night I realized that you would be the best person for the job because I can trust you and there is no way they would suspect you. They would think that it was myself, Draco, Ginny, Hermione, or Ron first. I am hoping that they never realize just how close we are."

"Okay," Luna nodded as she watched the incredible feat of magic that Harry was displaying. "Well then what are we going to be doing about not having a house? That seems like a pretty big problem. The frank way in which she asked her question made Harry laugh as he finished up the preparation spells.

"Well that's easy. We're going to come back with everyone in the core group including Severus and build it ourselves!"

"Honestly Harry, you worry me sometimes." Luna laughed watching as he began to weave the complicated charm with his wand, but without speaking a single word. I amazed her to see such powerful magic being done with such ease, but she never doubt him and she rather enjoyed being surrounded by his power.

"Well if I worry you that must be saying something." Harry joked back, his face turning serious. For the next few minutes the two kept silent as he continued to create the powerful charm. When it got to the part where he needed Luna, he beckoned her forward, letting his magic and the spell envelope her completely. When the spell was done Luna had the brightest smile on her face that Harry had ever seen.

"You should show your magic more often, it feels wonderful." Luna sighed wistfully.

"I wouldn't let Draco hear that." Harry laughed, taking the girl's hand. "I already put up anti-apparition spells up so we're going to need to step out of the fence. When we get back you're going to need to give everyone the coordinates."

The sun was just beginning to set as Harry and Luna landed in the Forbidden Forest. They made their way up to the castle quickly, making sure not to be seen by anyone, or get caught for being in the Forest. When they made it back to their rooms the rest of the core was waiting for them, which made Luna's job much easier.

"Where have you been mate? We were starting to worry." Ron greeted them and Harry instantly felt guilty. In his mad dash out of the castle, he had really only told Draco where he was going, while the others just had to guess.

"We had to get some business fixed, but before we go into more detail, is Severus around. It would just be easier if he were here too."

"No, he's doing something for Dumbledore, I think, but he did come by with a message." Hermione pulled a folded piece of parchment from her pocket and handed it to Harry. "He said it was important and that you should read it as soon as you got back."

Harry took the note and opened it quickly, scanning the neat handwriting twice to make sure he hadn't missed anything. It was a summons from Dumbledore to report to him the very second that he returned. Harry only had to assume what the meeting would be about. With a great sigh, he unclasped his cloak and draped it over the nearest chair.

"Well, what's the matter?" Neville asked and Harry just shook his head.

"Dumbledore wants to see me. I'm not sure how long this will take, but Luna wait for me to come back. We're going to need to have another meeting tonight and Severus needs to be here for it. Draco make sure you get word to him, okay?" When the blond nodded, Harry smiled grimly. "I have a feeling this talk is not going to be pleasant." With a quick goodbye and a gentle kiss from Draco, Harry was out the door again, resigned to his fate.

* * *

Dumbledore was waiting patiently for Harry when the boy arrived. There was already a  teapot and a cuppa ready for the boy and he took the seat in front of it. Nodding in greeting to the old man. He politely took a sip from the cup, waiting for Dumbledore to start.

"How are you my boy?" It was a simple question and while Harry wanted to respond that he was just fine, something was compelling him to say that he was tired. He realized then that the old wizard must have drugged the tea and he had to think fast. If he answered most of the questions truthfully, but fought the potion for the rest, he just might be able to fool the old man. Anger boiled in his veins, he could not believe the lengths that he would go to get answers, but was so unwilling to give any truthful answers of his own.

"Honestly I'm a bit tired." Harry replied smoothly. He hoped that his slight pause had not tipped off the man, but he had been truthful and it seemed that Dumbledore believed him because he simply nodded in agreement.

"As am I, my dear boy. I'm afraid that I'm getting old and weary, I'm not sure how much longer I will be able to keep my post here at the school." Again Harry watched him carefully.

"I'm sure you don't mean that." Harry protested, make sure to keep his fake emotions real enough so he would not be caught.

"It's touching that you would think so, Harry, but it is true. There are many things I must tell you before this time comes, however, and many things, I'm afraid, that I cannot."

Harry waited with baited breath for the man to continue. When he did, Harry was not disappointed. Without any hesitation, Dumbledore began to explain to him about horcruxes, the diary, and how it would take destroying all of them to finally defeat the man. Harry sat patiently, taking in all of the information, waiting for Dumbledore to stop and let him react.

"So what you're saying to me is that I have to find all these horcruxes and destroy them." Harry asked and the only man merely nodded. "Well that sounds easy."

"Easier than you'd think my boy. I have found one already, though I have yet to destroy it." This was when Harry finally looked at the man. His eyes traveled down to the hand that was being held out to him and he saw the gray, dying look of the skin and the harsh ring sitting on his finger.

"You're dying." It wasn't a question, but Dumbledore nodded anyways. "You wanted to tell me so I know before you-"

"I can't give you all the answers, Harry. But there is someone here at Hogwarts that will be able to help you, but only if you can convince them." Harry was about to ask if he was referring to Severus, but Dumbledore continued. "The reason why I brought Professor Williams onto the staff was because of who his great-grandfather was. He was the man who first wrote about horcruxes, Williams might not know as much, but he access to much more knowledge than we do."

"So you want me to trick the information from him?" Harry asked carefully.

"Yes."

"Well that's going to be easy." Harry rolled his eyes. "If that is all, I have homework to finish."

"Of course, Harry, let me know if I can be of any more use." Dumbledore smiled fondly and Harry saw, for the first time, a glimmer of the man that he once thought he knew.

"Of course, Sir." Harry took his leave quickly. He took his time making his way to his rooms so he could wrap his mind around all the information he was just given. He knew that he would have to talk to everyone about it when he got back, that and updating them on the new location of Headquarters, but he wasn't sure what exactly he was going to say. He wondered briefly if it was too late to just run away from all of his responsibilities, but one thought of Draco pushed such silly musings aside.

" _A lot on your mind?_ " Sal asked, startling Harry. He had hardly noticed that he had made it back so soon.

" _Yes. Just thinking that it would be easier to run away._ " Harry said wryly and the man in the portrait laughed.

" _Yes, it would be. Password?_ " Harry gave the password and walked in feeling a bit better. His friends were all waiting for him inside, just as they were when he left.

The day was winding down and the fire in the hearth warmed up the room to an almost uncomfortable level. The girls were all sitting by the fire, chatting and laughing with an ease that Harry nearly envied. The boys were in the kitchenette joking and laughing over drinks. This is the life that Harry wanted, the life he could only wish to have until the war was over. The girls noticed Harry first, their smiles warming the cold feeling around his heart.

"Well, that took you long enough. Sev should be here soon." Pansy said easily. She seemed much happier than the day before and Harry couldn't help but wonder what he had missed all day to make her seem like she had always belonged. The boys slowly made their way over to the fire, it took much too long to settle everyone in. It seemed that their numbers were forever growing and soon they would no longer all be able to fit by the hearth.

"So what did Dumbledore want?" Dean asked and all eyes fell on Harry again. Oftentimes the boy found it unnerving just how much his friends supported and trusted him.

"It seems that Professor Williams might know more about horcruxes than any of us."

"So that is what the old man is hiding." Severus said from the door startling everyone. "What exactly am I here for? If I keep coming by like this then my cover will surely be blown."

"There was a reason why we went to see Bill today." Harry nodded to Luna, who took out multiple pieces of parchment and started to hand them out. "Memorize those coordinates, the paper will burn up when you're done."

"You found a place to have our new headquarters?" Draco asked surprised. He was a bit hurt that Harry hadn't told him about it, but he understood why he would pick Luna, especially after what had just happened.

"Well not exactly. It's an empty plot of land." Luna said cheerfully and everyone, but Harry looked at her as if she had just grown another head. "Trust me I thought Harry was crazy too, but he said that we're going to build the house ourselves!" This time everyone looked at Harry as if he was going crazy.

"I mean we're going to all build it together." Harry smiled sheepishly and Draco rolled his eyes, kissing the boy on the cheek.

"Well if that's all, it's getting late." Hermione got up and yawned, everyone else who didn't live in the dorm followed suit. It took nearly fifteen minutes for everyone to say goodbye, Severus slipped out first, but by the time it was just six that actually lived in the rooms it was rather late.

“Well we're heading up to bed, we made the new rooms for Pans and Luna this morning, so they're all set. Night everyone." Blaise said as he and Ginny went up to bed for the night. Draco and Harry followed their lead, saying goodnight to the girls before making their way to their room.

They took turns showering, Draco sat in the bed reading while waiting for Harry so he could put out the candles. When Harry stood in the door watching his lover, he couldn't help but feel eternally grateful that he had Draco to help and support him. Minutes passed before Draco realized that he was being watched and he put his book down to look up at Harry. His breath got caught in his throat when he realized that Harry hadn't bothered to put on any clothes and was standing there completely naked, watching him.

"You coming to bed, love?" Draco asked, his voice deep and rough, making Harry shiver with desire.

"I don't know, you seem a bit overdressed for me." Harry smirked, his eyes alight with lust and appreciation as Draco slowly began to kneel on the bed, taking off his night shirt and pants with the utmost care. "Well if you're going to be that slow about it, I just might go to sleep."

"You wouldn't dare." Draco laughed. He was completely naked and he laid back down on the bed, spread out for Harry's enjoyment. Before he could brace himself, Harry used his catlike reflexes to run and pounce on the bed, effortlessly landing on top of Draco, their eyes meeting as a spark of magic went off around them.

"Would I?" Harry asked and Draco could hardly remember what Harry was referring to anymore as he watched as his full lips moved forming words that might as well have been in another language for how much Draco was actually processing them.

Harry began to place hot, open mouthed kisses down Draco's neck, using one hand to pin Draco's arms above his head to keep the blond from pushing him to go faster. The strangled groans falling from the boy's mouth made Harry speed up his pace, making sure to nip and suck on each of his pert nipples, giving them as much attention as he dared before moving lower. His tongue traced the taunt muscles of his abdomen and he made sure to leave dark bite marks in his wake.

"Fuck, Harry." Draco hissed as the boy made sure to bruise both of his prominent hip bones.

" _What do you want? Tell me what you want my Dragon._ " Harry hissed in parseltongue making Draco scream.

"Harry stop teasing." Harry smirked up at the boy, his normally green eyes black because of how dilated his pupils were. In response, Harry let go of the boy's arms, only to charm silk ropes to tie them to the headboard. Draco tugged at the confines for a second before realizing that he was not going to be able to get free. He was completely at Harry's mercy and the thought turned him on more than he thought it should have.

Now that his hand was free, Harry moved even further down Draco's body, his hands ghosting over the spots where he left particularly dark marks on Draco's pale skin. When he made it to Draco's impressive erection, Harry made sure to hover right over it long enough to make Draco buck up to try to get Harry to touch him. When he was sure that Draco would die if he wasn't touched, Harry's hands moved to his hips to keep them still as his mouth descended on his cock. The strangled cry that left Draco's lips made Harry moan, the vibration only making Draco react more. Harry's talented tongue worked up and down the shaft as his hands roamed up and down his sides, allowing Draco's hips to move, fucking Harry's mouth in earnest. Harry could tell by the noises that he was making that Draco wasn't going to last long. He had half the mind to slow down, torture the boy more, but all such thoughts were pushed away when he felt Draco's hands run through his hair. Stunned, Harry looked up through lidded eyes to see Draco doing his best to smirk down at him, through the clouded look of lust across his face masked it. The thought of Draco being powerful enough to escape his confines made Harry quicken his pace. Draco clawed at his back, screaming Harry's name as he came hard into the boy's mouth. The overload of feeling Draco's magic and his sperm shooting down his throat made Harry cum without even being touched. Draco drowsily crawled down to Harry, kissing his back and face as the boy rode out his orgasm. After, the two collapsed together in the middle of the bed, Harry pulling Draco close, getting the boy sticky with his own release.

"How did you do that?" Harry asked finally when he had regained his breath enough to speak. He vanished the mess they had made and pulled himself and Draco up to the head of the bed, settling beneath the covers.

"I'm not sure, honestly, I just sort of did." Draco yawned, snuggling deeper into Harry's embrace. "We'll figure it out in the morning, love. Go to sleep." Harry nodded, though he knew that Draco couldn't see him. The boy was already sound asleep.

" _Goodnight, my love._ " Harry hissed, not realizing that he once again slipped into the ancient language of the snakes. He rested his head on top of Draco's, closing his eyes and letting exhaustion take over and pull him to sleep.


	16. Chapter 16

Hermione slowly walked the aisles of the Restricted Section in the back of the library. Most classes were in session and only the sixth year Gryffindors and Hufflepuffs were on break so there was little to no one around to bother her. Pansy was walking in the opposite direction on the other side of the wall, while Harry stood seemingly lost in the middle.

"Why did you agree to come again, Harry? You're not being very useful." Hermione whispered to her friend as she passed him and Pansy stifled a giggle from his other side.

"Honestly, Potter. You're pretty good at coming up with ideas, but you're really shite at researching them if all you do is stand there. You do know that to find a book you have to look at it right?" Hermione rolled her eyes in a good natured fashion as she often did with Ron and Harry took that as a good sign. Since her move into the dorm, Pansy and Hermione seemed to become fast friends.

The three were looking for books on powerful protection spells and potions. The whole reason for building a house rather than just purchasing one was because Harry wanted to fortify every plank of wood and nail that would go into the building with an array of protective measures that would make Hogwarts look like a shack in comparison. It made it so their work was much more extensive, but with everyone in the Order eventually meant to be working on it as well as with Severus' help, the project would be set to finish around the winter holidays. It would mean weekend field trips and all nighters pouring over books and cauldrons, but the end result would be more than worth it.

"I know how to research, I'm just thinking." Harry defended himself halfheartedly and ignored it when Pansy scoffed. She was really like a more witty Ron with her sarcasm and at times Harry found it to be too much, Hermione seemed to sense that and cut in.

"What's wrong? You know you can tell us, right?" By this point both girls had picked up a few books and they made their way to a table even further back in the Restricted Section. Hermione's prefect status and Harry's reputation had won them the right to be there and while they assumed that Madame Pince would leave them alone, they couldn't be too sure so the farthest back they went the better.

"I don't know, when I woke up this morning Draco was sour with me. He barely even spoke." Harry said glumly and this time Pansy rolled her eyes.

"Well the reason is obvious, isn't it?" When Harry simply shook his head in confusion, Pansy continued a slight tone of aggravation creeping in. "Obviously he was upset that you took Lovegood with you to buy the land and not him. You didn't even tell him what your plans were and if you're supposed to be so close, even soul mates as he's told me, then wouldn't you think that you would care more for his opinion and at least tell him what you're going to do."

"But I didn't want him to get hurt! And I only took Luna because she's the secret keeper. There is no way it could be him, it would be too obvious. With Luna I saw her fight off the cruciatus, I know that she is strong enough to keep our secrets."

"And that's fine, picking her isn't the problem. You just didn't include Draco in any of this. Can't you understand how he might feel about that?"

"I suppose so." Harry started to have a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach. He hadn't meant to shut the boy out. Of course he cared about his opinion.

"Think of how Draco made you talk to Ron and I in the beginning of the year. You didn't mean to shut us out, but we still felt hurt by it. You just need to talk to him, explain your feelings. He might not forgive you right away, but maybe it's time you open up to him a bit. I know that you're a very private person and Ron and I respect that because we're your friends, but Draco is your boyfriend, you partner, that type of intimacy requires a little more candidness than friendship." Hermione tried to reason, hoping that her words would have a more positive affect on the boy since she knew him better. The word intimacy seemed to strike the thought in the boy, however because he looked as if he was about to argue back.

"But if he's mad at me why would he let me-"

"Thoroughly bugger him last night? Oh don't think I didn't hear that. You really should be using silencing spells, I'm just on the other side of the wall and stone is only so thick." Pansy glared and Harry had the decency to color a bit around the ears and neck. "But honestly, because he was worried about you. He was so high strung while you were gone it was a wonder he didn't jump you the second he saw you. That and _he's a teenage boy_." Pansy said the last part completely exasperated as if Harry should already know that, and to a certain degree she was right and Harry knew it.

"Harry, you just need to talk to him." Hermione piped up again, bring the conversation back to the topic at hand. She didn't really need to know much about the boys' private lives, just the idea alone made her insides feel funny and it was not exactly the right time to be investigating why the idea of her two male friends going at it like rabbits made her a bit giddy and red at the ears herself.

"I know, but I'm afraid-" Harry trailed off, but Hermione knew what he was trying to say. While Harry had never directly told her or Ron about the horrible treatment he received at the Dursley's, Ron had told her about the bars on his window and the small things that he noticed on the night he and the twins rescued him.

"Draco will accept you no matter what's happened in your past, Harry, you know that. I think you're more afraid of facing it again." When the boy nodded and hid his face in the fringe of his hair, Hermione moved around the table to pull him into a strong hug. Both were surprised when Pansy also came to hug the boy too, but the extra comfort did wonders to relieve the boy and when both girls pulled back he had a small grateful smile on his face.

"Thanks, I'm going to go track him down now. Are you two alright on your own?" Both girls nodded, wishing the boy good luck, and resumed their work as Harry left, feeling a bit like a persecuted felon walking to his trial.

With the help of his trusty map, Harry was able to find Draco sitting by the lake with Ginny and Luna. The girls saw him first, Draco's back was to him, and when he was close enough to hear them, Ginny warned Draco and the boy turned, his face blank and cold. Harry's heart broke. It felt like ages since he'd seen that look on Draco's face, and a lifetime ago that it had been directed at him. He stopped, a few yards away, and waited for Draco to make a move. When the blond turned again, as if he hadn't even seen Harry, the boy knew just how badly he had messed up, and prepared himself for a lifetime of groveling to make up for it.

"We should head in, remember what we talked about." Ginny said, gently pulling the Slytherin into a hug while Luna nodded enthusiastically, also hugging the boy. The girls stood up together, moving from Draco's side until they were standing with Harry. "Fix this, Harry. You've really made a mess of things this time." Ginny leveled him with her best _I'm_ _disappointed_ _with_ _you_ glare and Harry felt the ice of her stare penetrate his heart and sink all the way down to his toes.

"Normally I would try to make you feel better, but not this time. You really ought to talk to him." Luna added solemnly and if it was possible her tone made Harry feel even worse. Neither girl gave him any form of comfort as they bade him goodbye. Steadying his breath, Harry said a short prayer to the powers that be and made his way to his lover, who was still sitting with his back to him.

"Draco, I'm really sorry." Harry started as he walked slowly toward the boy. While he didn't turn to face Harry, he did move ever so slightly toward him which Harry took as a good sign. "I know you are mad at me, and I know why. I should have told you everything, about my plan, how Luna was involved. I should have asked your opinion and had you help me. I know you don't want to hear this though. I can't change what happened, but maybe I can explain to you why."

By this point Harry was sitting next to Draco, thought he was talking to the side of his face. When the bond finally turned to face him, his eyes were glazed over and a single tear made its slow decent down his pale cheek. Harry wanted nothing more to reach forward and brush it away, but he got the feeling that Draco wouldn't have reacted kindly to being touched.

"It's not that I don't trust you. Because I do, I trust you more than anyone! More than Hermione, Ron, all of the Order both the children and the adults. I trust you more than I trust myself at times. I'm just afraid if I tell you anything you'll be in more danger."

"That's rubbish and you know it. I literally came out and switched sides in the middle of a bloody war! I'm pretty sure that I'm in the most danger I could be unless I was actually you! I don't want to hear any of this hero shite! That's what it is, it's shite! You're just being selfish and you've once again completely forgot that I'm here to help you. We are all here to help you!" As he was speaking, Draco voice rose until he was yelling at the end. Harry took it silently, understanding that he both deserved it and that it was helping the boy vent. When he was sure that the boy was done, he continued talking, completely changing the topic. He knew that if he was going to have to tell Draco everything, he was just going to have to do it.

"I grew up with my aunt, uncle, and cousin. It was my sister's mother. I never knew about this place, this world, wizards, magic, none of it. Magic was a bad word in that house. I was their servant, think of me like a house elf. I cooked for them, cleaned, and did everything I was asked. I never once got my birthday celebrated, I was lucky when they gave me food, and I lived in a cupboard under the stairs.

"When I came to school and everyone expect something from me I didn't understand why. I didn't know who I was, or what had really happened to my parents. Sometimes I still think that everyone that grew up in this world knows more about me than I ever will. I don't know what that has to do with my recent behavior, but I do know that I'm so sorry, and I've never shared this with anyone. I just want you to know that I have such a hard time saying these things and I really am trying. I am so sorry, Draco. I just don't think about telling other people because I'm just not used to having anyone else that I can talk to. Ron and Hermione have always been a duo. Even though we're all very close, they've never been able to understand and most of the time when I tried to talk to them we just got into fights. I'm so sorry, I hope I can make this up to you."

Harry waited while Draco seemed to digest everything that he had told him. He knew that he told Hermione that he was more afraid of telling Draco than the boy's reaction, but that was a complete lie. He was petrified of how the boy would react. Slowly, Draco reached forward to pull Harry into a hug. The relief the boy felt nearly crushed him and he buried his face in the blond's shoulder.

"I forgive you, but that doesn't make me any less aggravated." Draco started slowly and Harry pulled back to watch him curiously. "I can't believe your relatives would do that you, I understand the not having someone to rely on your whole life, but that's really no excuse."

"You're right it's not-"

"Let me finish. I understand that speaking to me about things is going to take time, I know you're not intentionally shutting me out, but you have to understand how I feel. Just next time slow down and remember that I want to hear what you have to say, I want to be a part of the planning process. I know you won't change overnight, I expect you to mess up again, but I need to see an effort to change."

"I will do everything I can, I'm so sorry." Harry began to plead again and Draco nodded.

"I know you are." Draco sighed, moving so that he could lean into Harry. He wasn't mad anymore, not after everything he had just learned. Suddenly everything made more sense, and while he certainly wasn't happy with the boy, he could no longer hold this oversight against him. Every bad thought he'd had that day seemed to become less significant and soon he was just glad that Harry was the boy that he was. He wondered if he'd have been as well rounded and caring as Harry was if he'd been treated the same way since birth. He knew then that Harry was hurting so much more than he would ever let on and it became partially his responsibility to get the boy to open up more. "Come on, let's go back in." Draco said finally, standing up and pulling Harry up with him. "We should probably be helping the girls research, or we're never going to hear the end of it." The two made their way from the lake into the castle, holding hands. Both felt significantly better and a small smile graced their faces.

* * *

"I still think you should just ask him to talk after class one day." Hermione said smartly as she, Pansy, Ginny, and Luna organized the many books and piles of notes they'd made all day in the library. Harry and Draco finally joined them in the dorms and were trying to figure out exactly how Harry was meant to bring up the horcruxes to Professor Williams. It was lunch time and Gin and Luna decided to come back and help rather than watch the boys stuff their faces.

"And I'm telling you that you have to be more crafty about it than that. If you just ask him outright about obviously dark magic then he'll just deny it, or report you. It doesn't matter that you're the boy who lived, he's not just going to tell you about something like this." Pansy countered and Draco nodded.

"I think Pansy's right, you're going to need to do more private research first and maybe even find evidence that he has some experience working in his great-grandfather's field." Draco backed the girl up looking glum.

"How am I supposed to do that?" Harry asked and everyone remained silent, looking at each other as if one of them would suddenly have a brilliant idea.

"There might have been books about this in the Manor," Draco said slowly, "but I have no idea how we'd manage to get our hands on them."

"Could you asked Severus? He does have to go back for death eater meetings, doesn't he?" Luna asked.

"Yes, but if he gets caught taking them then he would be in more trouble than it's worth." Harry pointed out and Luna nodded, trying to think of another way. While Harry started to pace, the girls started to shift through the papers on the table, calling out names of books and remarking on whether or not it could be of use.

As the girls and Harry continued to talk Draco began to thumb through one of the magazines on the table. It was an old issue of Defense Weekly and they had found it in the library along with the many other works that vaguely mentioned horcruxes. He started to skim it as the others continued to brainstorms ways to make Professor Williams talk. When Draco got to the end of the article, he paused for a moment, rereading the line. He had heard it before, as a comment on one of his essays for DADA.

"I think we have our way in." All eyes feel on Draco as a smirk crossed the blond's face. "You just have to ask him why he's writing about dark objects and nearly revering them under a pen name."

"That's genius! But how do you know it's him?" Hermione asked, peering over his shoulder.

"This line right here, he wrote the same thing on my last paper. That and if you read this whole article then you'll notice that the language sounds very familiar." Hermione took up the magazine and skimmed it quickly, her eyebrows knotted as she continued down the page.

"Draco's right you know, this has to be him." Hermione nodded and handed it over to Harry. "Well, I suppose you're just going to have to confront him. He might ask why you're reading this magazine, but honestly I think you'll have him cornered, he really won't be able to talk himself out of this mess. Just say you'll go to Dumbledore about it, that ought to scare him."

"That's good, I'm sure I'll be able to get the information we need." Harry took the magazine and rolled it up to fit in his rucksack. "Well I think we've gone straight through our free period and lunch, we best get to our classes, I'll be sure to talk to Professor Williams today after class."

* * *

"That is all for today, don't forget your essays are due by Friday." It was the last class of the day and Harry sat back, taking his time to pack his things. The rest of his friends gave him meaningful looks, before filing out as quickly as could be seen as natural. The room was empty in no time and Harry was left to scoop up the rest of his things and conveniently exchange them for the magazine he had stuffed at the bottom.

"Professor, I just had a quick question for you." Harry moved to the front, making sure to hide what was in his hand.

"Mr. Potter, I didn't see you there still. Sure, but make it quick, there is a staff meeting before dinner that I have to make." The man was standing behind his desk, organizing papers and books from his classes that day.

"Of course. I was in the library earlier, doing a bit of extra reading in the Defense section, when I came across something, rather interesting. I was looking in an old tome, I forget the name of it, and I came across a strange term. Something called a horcrux." Harry started to make his way closer to the desk. When he got to the last word, he was leaning on the desk on his palms. He was at eye level with the man, thoroughly enjoying watching him pale and twitch. He really ought to have been put in Slytherin, Draco would be so proud.

"That's really evil magic, Mr. Potter, but that's all I know. What were you doing reading something like that? You have no business looking into something that dark. What are they leaving around for the kids to read in this school-" The more he talked, the faster he spoke. He was getting rather red in the face and Harry was sure he was rivaling Uncle Vernon with the lovely shade of purple he was becoming.

"You can't fool me, Professor. I looked up everything I could, your great-grandfather was the leading expert, some say he was the first one to make one. So you must know something. I just, I'm having a hard time wrapping my brain around it is all." Harry said, watching the man as he fidgeted and did his best to lie his way out.

"Just because _he_ worked on that _filth_ doesn't mean I did. I don't know why you want to know about these things Mr. Potter, but you best just forget it!"

"You don't think it's filth! You revere it! I know because I read your article on it." Harry threw down the magazine with such for the the man jumped back. "This is you, it might be under some pen name, but I recognized your writing style, well I didn't, Draco did, but still. This is you."

"What do you want?"

"Finally, we're getting to the good stuff. I want your information, all your information on these _things_."

"And if I don't?" The man bit back, Harry was starting to wonder if there was an easier way, but he knew that this was the only way. He was just going to erase his memories after anyways.

"I'll go to Dumbledore." That seemed to seal the deal. The man visibly deflated and seemed to give up entirely. He reached into his desk, pulled out a stack of parchment bound together by string, and placed it on the table.

"What are you going to do with it?"

"That's none of your concern." Harry picked up the pile with his right hand. He didn't need his wand to do the spell, he knew he had enough command of his magic to manage that much. " _Obliviate_."

* * *

Draco and Ginny were walking through the hall on the way to Professor Williams' office. They had tried to wait patiently for Harry back at the dorm, but he was taking too long and they were getting antsy waiting. Hermione finally sent them off to go check on him when she could no longer stand their pacing. So the two made their way in silence, both too worried to talk.

Despite all that had happened since the beginning of the year, the fast and sudden friendship, the even faster and seemingly more sudden relationship, and even the fight they had just had, Draco could not stop the nagging voice in his head that was telling him that Harry was meant to be his, meant to always be his. They had never discussed his patronus, no one had. It seemed like some unspoken agreement that everyone just _knew_ , but didn't know because no one would address it. He hadn't been in love with Harry when he'd first casted it, at least he was pretty sure that he hadn't. No he had to assess every situation and confront it head on. That was what he was meant to do because he was a Malfoy, he was _Draco_ _Malfoy_. So with that settled that just meant one thing, Harry had to be his soulmate. And maybe that was why he felt so connected to the messy haired, bespectacled man. Maybe, just maybe that was why, if he concentrated very hard, he could almost _feel_ Harry within himself, not in a sexual way, but in a way that was so much more intimate, so much more _together_ that it honestly scared him. On a subconscious level, he knew that the reason the bonds broke the night before was because their bond, their love or whatever magic made it so they were tied as one soul, would not let Harry truly bind him when all he wanted was to get free to be closer to him. It was that feeling, that need to be closer, that pushed Draco on through the drafty halls of the old castle with Ginny, ever silent, at his side. There was something within him that was pulling him ever closer to his lover and he couldn't fight it any longer.

They were around the corner from Professor Williams' office when they were suddenly ambushed from behind. Because he was so wrapped up in his own thoughts, Draco hadn't been ready, but Ginny had made sure to keep an eye out and was more ready for the attack. It only took the boy a second longer to whip out his wand, but by the time he had turned, there was already a strong binding hex heading straight for his chest.

" _Protego_!" Ginny's quick thinking kept Draco from being bound instantly, surprising not only him, but their attackers as well. It came as no surprise, however, when Draco got a good look at the two who had the nerve to assault them in the middle of the afternoon and found Greengrass and Nott glaring at the two. It seemed that even after their last attempt at an attack, Dumbledore had not bothered to see them properly taken care of. If they managed to get out of this situation with little to no injuries, Draco was going to give the old loon a piece of his mind. Pushing all thoughts of meddlesome old wizards aside, Draco fell into an easy battle stance and waited for their next move.

When the shield charm slowly began to fade, Astoria took the first move, shouting a rather nasty jinx in Ginny's direction and Draco had only a moment to spare to make sure that she could hold her own before having to turn and cast his own shield in response to Nott's slightly less powerful jinx. The two boys carried in the same fashion for what seemed like hours. Nott kept up his string of less than stellar hexes while Draco bided his time, waiting for the perfect opening to strike. If the shouts he was hearing from behind were any indication then Ginny was more than holding her own and might even have the upper hand, though the blond had no time to turn and check. Finally when Nott seemed to be worn down enough to slow, leaving gaps in his defense, Draco took the only opportunity he was likely to get.

" _Sectumsempra_!" Draco roared, using a spell that Severus had taught him to use, under the promise that he would only do so in his greatest time of need. The spell grazed the other boy's arm and he shouted in agony, dropping his wand to clutch his bleeding arm. Stunned by the power of the spell, Draco staggered back, as the boy dropped to his knees, curling up with his hand over the wound in a futile attempt to stop the bleeding.

Footsteps pounding on the stone drew everyone's attention. Harry was running with a large stack of parchment under his arm, skillfully shrinking it and placing it safely away before brandishing his wand. Everything seemed to slow down then as Draco watched Harry cast a particularly strong binding charm to both Astoria and Nott, effectively stopping them from fighting back. Satisfied that they would not be able to escape the spell, Harry went straight to Draco, worry clearly written on his face.

"I'm okay." Draco murmured gently as Harry looked him over with a critical eye. When he seemed sure that Draco wasn't hurt in any way, he pulled the blond in for a tight hug.

"Hey, I'm okay too, you know." Ginny joked from beside them and the boys pulled away, both blushing at her comment.

"Sorry Gin." Harry smiled sheepishly. "Now, to deal with these two." All three pairs of eyes moved to focus on the bound Slytherins sitting in heaps on the floor. Nott was still bleeding, but it looked like the spell Harry has cast on him acted as a pressure because he wasn't bleeding quite as much. Before any of them were able to voice their opinion on what should be done with them, a very confused Professor Williams' arrived on the scene.

"What is going on here?" He asked, though both Ginny and Draco noted that his voice seemed a bit far away, as if he was still recovering from a memory charm. The smirk on Harry's face confirmed their theory and both had to hold back their laughter.

More people were coming down the hall from the other end, Harry vaguely made out the shape of Hermione's bushy hair and Severus' flowing cape before the two were close enough to actually be identifiable. Along with them were the three other heads of houses and Professor Dumbledore himself.

The next few minutes flew by so fast that the trio barely knew what was happening. First, Hermione ran to them, managing to pull all three of them into a huge hug. Snape went to check on his two students while the rest of the Professors talked over each other trying to sort out what was going on. In the end, Harry and rest of the students, Nott and Astoria excluded, ended up back at Severus' office while the professors took the two Slytherins up to the headmaster's office. The four waited in Snape's office for what felt like ages until Severus returned, looking more aggravated than any of them had ever seen him.

"He's completely off his rocker." Severus said, through gritted teeth.

"They can't actually get away with this." Hermione protested and Severus took his seat gingerly, rubbing his long fingers of his temples. "I wish that were so, Miss Granger, but until we can bring this problem up with the Governors at the head of the school board there is nothing to be done."

"Well they must vote him out, this has gotten out of hand." Ginny reasoned.

"That may be so, but who will they put in his place? There are many corrupt men in on the board, there are too many of them who are connect to the Dark Lord. I shudder to think who they would find as a replacement." The color seemed to drain further out of his face and the four in front of him were completely thrown off by his reaction. They weren't scared for the fate of the school, but with the way that Severus was carrying on, they also began to worry about the direction that the school and the war would take if death eaters were able to take over Hogwarts.

"What if they choose you?" It's Draco who responds and he looks almost childlike as his eyes grow wide and the fear is clear. It breaks Severus' heart to see him this way and Harry reflexively pulls him in for a strong hug.

"Let's just hope it doesn't come down to that." Severus whispered and a dead silence fell over them as Severus looked over the four children in front of him. For all of their hard work, all of their bravery, they were just children and it was his job to protect them. He only wished that he would be able to so and keep himself alive to the end.


	17. Chapter 17

"Harry are you sure this is a good idea?" Hermione shouted over the low roar of the crowd of students waiting for the meeting to start. Her gaze shifted toward Severus and Pansy who stood off to the side with Luna, Blaise, and Ginny, the former two looking decidedly uncomfortable.

Harry just rolled his eyes in response. He did his best to make his way over to the girl, but he kept getting stopped by someone to talk. First it was Neville, asking about the plan for the night. Then it was Seamus and Dean, they were keeping him up to date with the gossip traveling around the room. At some point Ron stopped him, but it was more that he ran into him on the way to catch up with the twins so that hardly counted. When he finally was standing beside her it was nearly time for the meeting to start so he kept his response short.

"Good or bad, we need them." Hermione simply nodded, knowing that the conversation would have to wait. There were too many things that needed to be done that night and Severus and Pansy would just have to try and integrate into the group just as fast as Draco and Blaise did. "Well, here goes nothing." Harry looked to the two out of place Slytherins in the corner, nodded once more to Hermione and then took his spot in front of all of his students. Silence fell across the room rapidly. Harry took a moment to take pride in both himself and his fellow leaders for instilling the respect of all of their students to the point where they all stopped talking, waiting for instruction without needing to be asked. Pride aside, Harry knew that there was no time for such sentimentality and he pushed on.

"So I know what a lot of you are thinking. I know that we've once again brought two new members into our circle without consulting all of you, and believe me when I say that I'm really sorry that this has all happened the way it has. I know that you're all weary of accepting both Professor Snape and Pansy Parkinson as you were with Draco and Blaise, maybe even more so, but you have my word and the word of all of your instructors that you are still very safe here. They are meant to be helping us and I don't know about all of you, but I appreciate all the help that I can get. Now I know that you will all have a lot of questions, but it's already late and there is a lot that needs to get done today. You know who your instructors are, pull them aside at the end of the night, or in your dorms tonight if you know that you're not being overheard and ask your questions then." Harry paused long enough for anyone to object. He looked to every member of the junior order, each nodding to him that they knew how to handle any possible problem brought on by one of the younger DA members. When Harry was satisfied, he continued. "Okay good, so our first order of business is very important, we're going to be breaking you up into groups. Today is going to be a practical lesson for not only defense, but also for potions. One half of the group will be working with the assigned defense instructors on the left side of the room, the rest will be working with myself, Draco, and Blaise, and Professor Snape on simple potions that we will then keep in our personal DA stock, just in case. We're going to call it a little early tonight for the younger students, the rest of you know what's expected of you after the meeting."

Hermione had been the one to suggest to have Severus and Pansy sit in on their first junior order meeting that night rather than complicate things which Harry had been very grateful for the suggestion.

The junior order members meant to be teaching defense moved to their side of the room, which was already set up by Ron and the twins while Hermione and Draco went about, splitting up the students into their groups. The room easily provided them the desks they needed for brewing once the students moved enough to make room for them and Harry was able to turn his attention to the group of five still standing in the back of the room, waiting for him.

"Thanks Gin, Luna, you guys start up with your groups. Pansy I want you to stay with Hermione tonight, she will get you up to speed on the defense skills that we've been working on all year and from there she can give you more instruction."

Pansy nodded and went quietly with Ginny and Luna, leaving Severus and Blaise waiting on Harry for instruction. Draco was busy helping to set up the rest of the cauldrons and the chalkboard with the instructions so Harry walked down with Severus and Blaise, talking in hushed tones with them.

"No one should give you any problems, but if they do don't hesitate to reprimand them." Harry nodded to Severus as he watched the rest of the room come together with relative ease. "Just make sure not to take house points, as it would be hard to explain the reason."

"I know that, Potter." Severus glared down at him and Harry held back from countering.

"Sev, don't talk out your nerves on Harry." Draco chided his Godfather when they were within range to hear his whispers.

"I am doing no such thing." Severus clipped back.

Draco rolled his eyes. "Sure, whatever you say."

They broke off from there, Draco, Blaise, and Harry began to partner up their half of the group and Severus began spelling the directions up on the board and laying out the ingredients. While Blaise was busy seating the last of the students, Draco pulled Harry to the side, looking more than a little worried.

"You know he didn't mean that, right?" Draco whispered and looked to his godfather before focusing on his lover again. Harry sighed, pulling the blond into his arms for a quick, tight hug.

"I know, this is stressful on all of us." Harry dropped a light kiss on the boy's temple before pulling away. "Let's just get through the lessons then everything will get easier."

Severus watched the two boys from the front of the makeshift classroom feeling guilty. It was obvious the stress that the two were putting on themselves to maintain such a huge secret student organization and his behavior was both childish and completely uncalled for. He vowed to fix his behavior and apologize to them the next second that he got. If they were able to act like adults in such a stressful situation then he would to. With that in mind, he took a deep breath, calming his nerves, and began the lesson.

"Today we will be brewing a simple blood replenishing potion. The instructions are on the board."

The small group of students under Severus' watchful gaze moved wearily to pick up the ingredients, all too used to the potion master's sharp tongue. They made quick work of preparing their ingredients with little noise, the shouts and laughter from the other side of the room was a stark contrast.

"You know you can speak right?" Blaise drawled slightly breaking the tension. "Just keep a steady hand and concentrate, but this is a first year potion, I have faith that you can all do it."

With his small words of encouragement, the group as a whole seemed to breath out a great big sigh of relief and soon there were small murmurs of conversation traveling around the room. Draco, Harry and Blaise each stood by one of the tables, leaving one group of students unattended. Seeing this, Severus left his perch at his desk and walked over to the group of fifth year Gryffindors. He smirked internally when the held back from flinching. He was almost proud.

"Mr. Creevey." The boy kept his chin up and looked his professor dead in the eye.

"Yes, Sir." Severus' stern gaze softened ever so slightly and the other students at the table nearly gasped.

"Your knife work has improved, just be sure to hold it steady and you should have uniform slices."

"Thank you, Sir." Colin nodded in amazement, a small smile forming on his face. Severus merely nodded and swept on to Blaise's table, and then continued on his circuit around the room a few more times, correcting and complementing as he went.

"Are you sure that's Snape?" Colin whispered at one point to Draco as he passed.

"No, that's Severus." Draco smiled genuinely. "But don't go telling people, you'll ruin his reputation."

"Enough chatter." Severus intoned from the the other side which caused both Colin and Draco to fall into a fit of laughter.

The rest of the night passed in much the same way, Severus made his rounds a few more times before sitting down at the desk, mulling over papers while he let Blaise, Draco and Harry take over for the rest of the night. He watched each boy carefully, noting each of their teaching strengths and how each was able to take on their leadership roles without stepping on the others' toes. He was more than a little impressed with the way they carried on and he was glad to see that the students were not as helpless as Voldemort or even his fellow teachers assumed them to be.

On the other side of the room, Hermione, Ginny, Luna, and Neville were running the regular defense drills. They had moved passed simple shields and hexes and were on the more heavy duty enchantments. They had just begun working on strong rebounding charms the meeting before and the students broke themselves back up into the groups from before.

"We're just going to work one on one today." Hermione said while pulling Pansy off to the side. "I'm sure you're up to speed with this lot on defense, but it doesn't hurt to run some drills and we can move on from there, alright?"

"Alright, sounds fair." Pansy nodded her consent and Hermione called cushions from the room and spelled them in a circle around them.

"We're just going to work on the simple shield charm, disarming charm, and a hex. Don't feel the need to hold back, I'm perfectly capable of handling myself and I want to see you at your fullest potential."

"Alright, but I'm better than you think." Pansy smirked, dropping into a dueling pose with ease. Hermione merely smirked back, sizing up her opponent with with look.

"Expelliarmus!" Hermione shouted the first opening she saw. Pansy was quick to act, however and the strength of her shield actually made Hermione stagger back a bit before regaining her footing. "Nice, that was a quick reaction. 

"I wouldn't let your guard down again." Pansy replied, dancing around Hermione, her focus completely on their duel. "Locomotor Mortis!" Pansy shot back and Hermione had to dive out of the way, the power of the spell just skimming past her. The smirk on the Slytherin's face was enough to fuel Hermione to jump up quickly into a defensive stance.

"Alright, if you want to play that way." Hermione grinned back, her face suddenly turning serious as she forced Pansy to walk in a circle, watching for any possible opening. She fired off a rapid string of hexes, pushing Pansy even further back. Surprised by how quickly Hermione was able to cast such powerful spells, Pansy stumbled back until her heel hit one of the cushions, regaining her bearings, she erected a strong shield that forced Hermione to stop her assault and also regroup.

Soon the rest of the defense students had stopped their training to watch the two and Neville made sure to put up a protective shield around them so none of their magic strayed and hit anyone else. The two girls didn't even notice however because of how intensely they were staring at each other.

"You getting tired yet, Granger?" The use of surnames just seemed to slide back into place as the snake moved slowly around the proud lioness.

"Not even in the slightest, Parkinson." Hermione growled back, before casting a particularly powerful hex, one that she would never have used on any of the younger students in the DA for practice purposes. Pansy, however, deflected it with ease, only the thin line of sweat on her brow giving any indication that the duel might be weighing down on her.

"Is that all you've got?" Pansy taunted again, lunging forward with the ease of a snake that Hermione was caught completely off guard and the minor stinging hex penetrated her hasty shield, causing her to fall back on the cushions with the wind completely knocked out of her. 

Pansy slaughtered over, her face set in a tight smirk. She looked down at the girl with her wand pointed, a triumphant gleam in her eyes. "Do you yield, Granger?"

Their half of the room seemed to fall completely silent while the onlookers waited for Hermione to make a move. "I yield." The collective gasp from the room was enough to draw the attention of the girls, though neither looked up from the spell that still held their gazes onto each other. Pansy nodded slightly, tucking her wand away and holding her hand out to Hermione, the smirk replaced by a genuine smile.

"Good duel, Hermione." The lioness smiled back, taking the offered hand, shaking it firmly when she was standing again. When the two broke apart, they realized just how much of an audience they had gathered and both blushed deeply.

"That was a really good demonstration." Neville said as he took down the protective shield and handed each girl goblets of water. "It's getting a bit late though, we might want to wrap up." Hermione nodded, taking the goblet gratefully and downing it in one go. Handing it back to Neville, she moved to the head of the room to wrap up the night since Harry was still busy with the potions lesson.

"Alright, thank you for the very productive night!" Hermione called from the head of the room as the students working on the potions began to cork up the vials. "You know the drill, leave in pairs or trios and keep close to the darkness. Don't get caught and don't draw your wand unless necessary. You know how to call us if you need help. The rest of you know if you have to stay, if you want to help clean up then be my guest, otherwise we'll start up in twenty minutes."

"That was a really good lesson tonight." Ginny commented when she joined Hermione at the front of the room, Luna in toe. "The group seemed to be progressing well, I think we should switch the potions and defense group next week so they equal amounts of help."

"I'm pretty sure we'll have a potions store to rival the Hospital Wing in a few weeks." Blaise added, joining the small group, pulling Ginny into a hug from behind and dropping a kiss on her cheek.

"Are they always this obnoxiously cute?" Pansy asked though the grin on her face betrayed her.

"Oh please, Draco and Harry are far worse." Ginny rolled her eyes in means of defense. Across the room, the pair in question were holding a hushed, private conversation and it didn't escape anyone's notice how Harry's hand was slowly running circles on Draco's lower back.

"Really, they're quite terrible." Fred nodded as he and George joined them with Ron, who wrapped his arm around Hermione.

"Hey, they're both finally happy, I say lay off them." Ron smiled at the pair, shaking his head.

"That's oddly mature of you." Severus pointed out, startling the growing group as they all watched the oblivious lovebirds.

"I've heard that we're all full of surprises." Ron smirked worthy of a Slytherin and Severus colored, but only slightly.

"Maybe we're all growing up a little." Luna said in her signature dreamy voice and the others just nodded, all too wrapped up in their own thoughts to comment. Across the room, Harry and Draco were none the wiser.

"You look really tired, love." Draco whispered, leaning into Harry's hand on his lower back. "You know that we can run the meeting tonight, right? Maybe you should go back and sleep."

"No, I have to be here, you know that." Harry sighed, tired, but he still managed to give Draco a small smile. "Plus, I'm not going to bed tonight without you by my side." Draco blushed at the comment and leaned in to place a gentle kiss on Harry's lips.

"I told you I forgave you already, you don't have to worry about me going anywhere." The illusion to their fight just days before made Harry's face screw up in pain before he relaxed and pulled Draco closer.

"I know. I'm sorry."

"I know you are." Draco smiled, running his hands up and down Harry's side. "Come on, let's get this over with and go to bed." Draco pulled away and took Harry's hand, pretending to not notice that most of the eyes in the room were focused on the two of them. 

"That's probably the best thing I've heard all day." Harry grinned back, allowing Draco and drag him along until they were standing with the group again. When they finally rejoined the group, most had the decency to pretend that they weren't all just staring at the pair, but Hermione was giving them an indulgent smile.

"I already filled everyone in on the small matters, I think we just need to go over the animagus the matter." Hermione filled the boys in and Harry nodded his thank you before turning to address the rest of the students, his arms still firmly wrapped around Draco.

"Well I don't mean to keep you guys too long tonight, so I just want to go over a few quick things. First of all, most of you know this, but Severus and Pansy don't." And so Harry began to fill the two newest members on his animagus ability. As he predicted, he had to prove himself and so he turned into the black panther, prancing about the room with ease, much to everyone's amusement. When he turned back, he brought up the idea of helping other junior Order members to become illegal animagus as well.

"It would be tricky, but I'm sure with everyone's help we could pull off at least a few transformations by the time spring rolls around." Severus mused out loud, voicing the same thoughts that Harry, Hermione, and Draco had discussed just the night before.

"Well that's all for the night, remember to be careful heading back, we'll alert you of the next meeting in the usual fashion." The room cleared out fairly quickly as it was nearing one in the morning and everyone was very tired. Hermione and the others called their good nights leaving Severus, Harry, and Draco behind.

"So what did you think?" Draco asked his godfather expectantly.

"It was a good meeting, I'm impressed with how well organized you have the students, Harry." Harry colored slightly at the compliment, but took it in stride.

"Thank you, but honestly I have gotten so much help from the others, I can't take all of the credit."

"As it should be." Severus nodded, smiling slightly. "It would do you good to remember that you're not alone."

The fight from just the past week rose in Harry's mind again and he briefly wondered if the man was reading his mind again, but a quick check of his mental walls reassured him that he was still very well protected. Apparently he was not as good at hiding his insecurities as he had once thought.

"Don't worry, we're all here to remind him." Draco responded quietly, grabbing Harry's hand to hold tightly in his own.

"Good." Severus smiled openly then, saying his goodbyes before also leaving the room. Draco and Harry left last, making sure not to be caught on their silent walk back to their rooms, their hands never leaving the other. 

* * *

Severus returned to his rooms with far too many thoughts on his mind. To say that he had been surprised with the events that had transpired that night would have been a gross understatement. Since the start of term, he had been constantly surprised by Harry and his complete behavior change. He had learned so much from watching the boy's interactions with his godson and he had grown to not only understand the boy better, but also to come to respect him. He had been expecting the night to go well, he hadn't doubted Harry or his friends' ability to manage a group of their peers, but he'd had his reservations on how well the operation would run. He was surprised at just how much respect Harry and the rest of the leaders had commanded that night. They had all been very welcoming to Pansy and had even treated him with more respect than he had ever seen in the classroom. And true to form, Harry didn't even realize just how much of his own hard work and effort was driving the group. How Severus had ever thought him to be as arrogant as his father, he would never know, but Harry was so much better of a person and the meeting had only further proven that. His thoughts were suddenly pushed out of his mind when a sharp pain shot up from his left arm.

Staggering back, Severus had to lean on his desk to keep himself from falling over from the pain. His vision began to blur and the room swam before his eyes before the pain subsided enough for him to react. The Dark Lord was clearly not in a good mood and a knot formed in his stomach at the thought. Quickly, Severus transfigured his robes and moved to the one place in his rooms that he could safely disapparate from. With one last worried thought, he cleared his mind and disapparated to his master's side.

When he arrived, the rest of the Death Eaters were already waiting, standing in the standard circular formation around their master in the drawing room. Severus made sure to keep his eyes trained forward and his mind clear, especially while passing the spot where he knew Narcissa's cage was, but was hidden from his view.

"So good of you to join us." Voldemort's voice sent shivers down everyone's spine, but only the lesser Death Eaters were weak enough to show it. The gentle hiss of Nagini, calling them out for their actions made many flinch, but Snape stood his ground, gracefully making his way to the center as the bodies parted for him. He walked straight up to Voldemort, his head held high, but his gaze down casted, until he dropped down on his knees, his eyes falling to the floor.

"I live to serve you, always, Master." The deep baritone of his voice rang clear through the open room and when he rose, Voldemort looked on him with a pleased expression.

"Good." Voldemort hissed, petting Nagini's head in what most resembled affection, though Severus knew the evil man could never comprehend such an emotion. "Are the rumors true? Is old Albus being forced to step down as Headmaster?"

"They are, the Board of Governors is meeting in a week, but I thought that you would already know that, isn't Lucius still on the board?" It was an innocent enough question, but Severus knew better. Lucius had been taken off just days before because Voldemort hadn't let him leave his home in so long that his spot was stripped from him. Not very many knew this, of course, Severus himself should not have, but Dumbledore had clued him into this fact, just days before he had been accused of endangering the students and had been brought up on chargers by the very same board. At the mention of the failure of a Death Eater, Voldemort's eyes began to glow more red than Severus had seen them in some time and it appeared that he then had the answer to his master's anger right before his arrival.

"Lucius was taken from the board, but not to worry, we do have other informants."

"Oh?" Severus asked and instantly he felt Voldemort pry into his mind. Years of practice made him ready for the assault, however, and he spoon fed the man everything that he could ever hope to find. He gave small hints of his anger with Lucius, his pride at his own usefulness, a pinch of fear for his master, and topped it off with an eagerness to fulfill the man's every wish if only to earn the respect that he always wanted. Pleased with these things, Voldemort simply nodded and sneered.

"Yes, but only I know the identity, it is safer that way."

"Of course, My Lord, whatever it is that you believe must be so."

"Yes." Voldemort hissed and the smirk returned to his face. "The rest of you are dismissed, Lucius please stay behind."  The room emptied quickly. Bellatrix made a little scene about not being allowed to stay, but the three men remaining paid her little mind and so she left completely ignored. Her wails did horribly upset Narcissa, however, who Severus could now clearly see. The shadow of a woman lay crying and clinging to herself. Voldemort shot a quick hex at her, effectively silencing her. Severus schooled his features to keep from flinching, Lucius, however, didn't even seem to notice. That alone made the potions master sick. "Now, tell me news of the traitor and the Potter brat. I heard that you had to haul the Greengrass girl and Nott off for attacking them."

"I assure you, My Lord, that I would have let their attack slide had they not continuously caused a scene. If I am to try to work my way in with Potter then I have to at least remove them from the school."

"Of course, that is no matter. They were hardly of any use anymore." Voldemort said while waving Severus off. Lucius began to seethe at the words, but the other two ignored him. "But what of Potter? How is it going trying to get in his favor?"

"Difficult." Severus responded with ease. He made sure to add as much loathing and frustration to his words as he could muster. "He does not trust me in the slightest, though he has become at least grudgingly civil with me. I am afraid that I am no closer to achieving any real progress with him, however. These things take time."

"Time is not something we have, Severus." The calculating look that the man gave him was enough to make Severus shiver outwardly, though he made sure to keep it subtle enough. He wanted it to look like he was trying to hide his fear, but not enough that Voldemort wasn't aware. It would do him little good to have the man believe that Severus didn't fear him at all. Voldemort seemed pleased with the reaction, however, and Severus took that as his cue to continue speaking.

"I know, I am working on it, I think in about a month I will have more to report."

"Good. That will be all for the night, gentleman. Oh and Lucius, if Severus is not able to gather enough information and it is because of your traitorous son, you will be sure to pay in full." The look that Voldemort shot Lucius was cold enough that Severus actually felt genuine fear for the shell of a man standing before him, though he felt absolutely no sympathy. Lucius was a disgusting excuse for a human being and no doubt wanted his son dead now more than ever.

Voldemort took his leave with ease, leaving the two men behind to stand in tense silence waiting for him to be far enough away that they could carry on a conversation without him overhearing. The second they were sure that they were alone, of course with an exception to Narcissa because Severus was all too aware of her presence, Lucius rounded on him, his eyes narrowed to the point of slits and near steam rising from his ears.

"You're not fooling me, you know, I know you're planning something with that traitorous son of mine." The spittle flying from Lucius' mouth was enough to make Severus flinch back in utter distaste.

"And why is that? Is it because I actually care about his well being because while you were running around with your pureblood ideals all of his life I was the one who actually raised him? Are you just mad that I care more about Narcissa and Draco than you ever could?"

"How dare you bring her up! What would you know about being a pure-blood? You're a filthy half-blood! I don't know what the Dark Lord sees in you! Why he is so fond of you when you're not even worthy of our company!" Lucius growled back, sticking his finger into Severus' chest making the man back up even further.

"At least I have a heart! How could you just abandon your wife? How can you ignore the fact that she's in the very room with us, losing her sanity at the hand of her sister?" Severus' voice boomed and Lucius had enough sense to at least back off.

"Watch your tongue, Severus, you're very close to speaking treason!"

"Treason? You're the one who is too weak to go through with our Master's wishes! I have worked far too hard to be spoken down to by the likes of you! I may be a half-blood, but I'm doing far more in this war than you are! I might not agree with Draco's choices, but even the Dark Lord said that if I can return him to our side he will not be punishment free, but he will not be killed! How hard is it for you to care about your family more than you care about yourself?"

"It's odd to hear a lecture on love coming from you, Severus." Lucius sneered and the words hit Severus harder than any curse could have. 

"Don't you dare presume to understand love, Lucius, especially mine." The tone was more than a little threatening and Lucius backed up instinctively. "One day, when this is all over, I will be standing by you with Draco and Narcissa, healthy and alive, and we will watch you as you spiral out of your mind due to the chaos that you've reeked. And I will have the power to save you. But I won't." With those final words, Severus stormed from the room, allowing one look for Narcissa in her cage, before stealing his emotions and leaving the manor and a stunned Lucius in his wake.


	18. Chapter 18

The end of November rolled around with little incident. Dumbledore's trial was set to take place on the the twenty-seventh, which was less than a week away. Until that point, Professor McGonagall was taking her role as Deputy Headmistress very seriously and her students suffered from her added stress. Severus had also been much too busy to come around to meetings, though it was because of his work for Voldemort. The DA as a whole had to be much more careful in their operations. Because of the up and coming trial, the Board of Governors had decided to take a closer look into the recent happenings at the school and Ministry officials were seen coming and going as if they owned the place. This of course was cause for great concern as all but the first years could remember quite clearly what a Ministry run Hogwarts was like from just the year previous. Because of the heightened security, Harry was more on edge then when they had been under silent attack by the then unknown students and that caused the rest of the junior order to also be on high alert.

The core was sitting around in their usual places around the breakfast table on Saturday morning. They had plans to set out and work on the house, since it was a Hogsmeade weekend and they could easily slip off in the sleepy town. McGonagall would have been the only professor that they would have had to be weary of, but she was staying in the castle more and more now and it was almost a given that she would not be supervising the trips that normally were her duty. All of the spells had already been looked up by Hermione, Pansy, Ginny, and Harry and Draco and Blaise had been busy the past few weeks with Neville, pouring over old tombs of architectural spells. Ron was going to be the chief spell worker with most of the building spells because he knew many from having to help fix up the Burrow over the years. Seamus and Dean were in charge of taking down the trees necessary to build the frame, this was a particularly difficult task because while the land they had was vast and there were a lot of trees on the property, they didn't want to completely destroy the life on the property. Equally they wouldn't be able to go off too far because trees suddenly disappearing would not go unnoticed. Because they were meant to be moving the most around the property, they were also acting as lookouts should something go wrong.

The group ate in relative silence, though they kept up at least a normal level of banter as to not cause unwanted attention. Luna was sitting with them as well, which wasn't all too out of the ordinary, but Harry was noticing well trained glances from McGonagall and was preparing himself for a long conversation with the Headmistress before leaving for Hogsmeade. As if she read his mind, McGonagall started to make her way toward their table. Only Hermione seemed to notice, and she gently nudged Harry from his right.

"We'll stick to the plan and meet you at the house, okay?"

"Yes, thank you." Harry whispered back, giving Draco's hand a quick squeeze under the table. "I've got to go, stick to the plan." Draco nodded subtly, his head still turned toward Ginny and only someone who was looking very closely would even be able to tell that anything had passed between the two boys.

"Mr. Potter, a word please?" Harry stood and followed her without ceremony. It would have been pointless to act surprised, he had a feeling that nothing went without notice by his head of house, and he strengthened the walls around his mind as the continued to walk. She lead them out to the main hall before turning a sharp right and bringing him into the room that the first years wait in right off the Great Hall before being sorted. He wondered why they didn't just go through the entrance in the hall itself, but he held his tongue. "I know you are planning something, Potter." The boy in question made move to protest, but a well placed sharp gaze from the witch stopped him. "I'm not asking what, I'm sure it's best that I didn't know, but I'm warning you to be careful. Whatever it is, I can't protect you, we can't afford to send an Order member after you."

"I assure you that won't be necessary." Harry responded curtly. He did his best not to sound disrespectful. He knew that McGonagall was a staunch supporter of Dumbledore, but even she had been upset with the old man's actions as of late and Harry still looked to her with much respect as a witch and an educator.

"You can never be too careful." McGonagall said with pursed lips. Carefully, she pulled out an object from her pocket. The gold shined in the dim candle light and it took Harry a moment to recognize the time turner. "This is not the same as the one that I loaned Miss Granger in your third year. That one was my personal time turner. This one is yours. It was one of the many magical artifacts that your parents owned which they had placed in the care of the Order before their death. I motioned to have it returned to your vaults, but Dumbledore said he was still using it. When the Ministry came for him, I was able to take it back from his office. It's more powerful than mine, your father used it often in his time as an Order member as well as in school, though I could never prove it." The small smirk on the witch's face made a small, appreciative smile come to Harry's. He might not know much about his father, and what he did was not exactly the nicest coming from Severus' memories, but Harry could easily imagine Sirius running a muck with the time turner and the fond memories seemed to bring forth more happy feelings then sad as of late.

"Thank you, I will be sure to use it well and keep it hidden."

"Good, now go on I think the last group of students will be leaving soon and I wouldn't want you to miss them."

Harry nodded his thanks and took his leave. He made sure to not be seen as he moved from the small room to the main hall, slipping the golden trinket over his neck and resting it against his chest under his robes. The rest of his friends had already taken off, it seemed that they had followed Hermione's orders not to wait for him and Harry did his best to slip into the dwindling crowd without calling any attention.

"Hello Harry." Luna appeared by the door when Harry got close, nearly startling the boy.

"Hey Luna, I thought you'd gone with the others." Harry smiled, moving to stand next to her as they waited for an empty carriage.

"I was going to, but then I stopped because the nargles were harassing a first year and I thought I would help him." The girl said in her usual dreamy manner and Harry couldn't help but laugh. With all of the events of the past year, Luna had become a regular fixture in Harry's life to the point where her odd comments seemed normal and even Hermione was able to indulge the girl without going mad. If you looked past most of the fantasy talk, Luna was actually very brilliant and her research on horcruxes had turned up invaluable information that even Hermione could not argue with.

"That was very kind of you, Luna."

"The nargles didn't think so." The girl replied with an air about her that clearly stated that they were done with the conversation. Harry just shook his head, following her into an empty carriage and placing silencing spells around it so they could talk more on the ride down.

"I'm hoping to have the construction done before the winter hol’s. If we're lucky, we can have it open for anyone who needs a safe place to stay. I know that I don't want to endanger the Weasley's by staying at the Burrow." If Luna noticed Harry's clear avoidance of his Godfather's home, she didn't mention it, but merely nodded.

"I'm sure we will finish it soon, I could always find magical creatures in the woods to help us too." The girl said with an indulgent smile and Harry had to hold back a snort. He didn't think she would understand a Snow White reference even if he was tactless enough to make one and he just nodded in return. "Come on, we're at the gate, we should find a quiet place to disapparate from."

Harry and Luna departed from their carriage and moved off and away from the main village and toward the shrieking shack where they would have more privacy. The air was thick with magic and Harry could nearly taste it. It wouldn't be hard to disapparate from the outskirts without getting caught. It was less condensed with magic there and he would have no issue taking Luna side along. When they were far enough out that they were sure that no one was following them, Harry pulled Luna to his side with his arm securely around her before disapparating to their new headquarters.

When they arrived, they found themselves standing in the middle of a mad house. On closer inspection, Harry could tell that they were actually very well organized and that they were much farther along then he would have suspected. There were well placed piles of timber obviously farmed by Dean and Seamus, though the two were nowhere in sight. Draco and Blaise were using spells to strip them down to planks and Hermione, Ginny and Pansy were busy spelling the planks with as many protective and shielding spells that they had found. Ron and Neville were set off from the rest, with rolls of parchment spread out with the plans. They already had wood set down for the frame, though there was still a lack of concrete that would be needed to support the structure, that was where Harry and Luna came in. It seemed that Neville and Ron were just waiting for them to continue.

"Took you two long enough, we were going to send a search party!" Ron joked when the two got close enough to hear him over all noise.

"What did the Headmistress want?" Neville leveled Harry with a knowing gaze, though the smile never left his face as if he already knew the answer to his question.

"She just wanted to make sure we stayed safe, and she gave me a parting gift." Harry tugged on the chain that was concealed under his robes and Luna pouted at the sight of it.

"You didn't think to tell me that earlier." Luna joked and Harry just smiled ruefully.

"I'm sure I'll make it up to you. Come on, we've got work to do."

They continued on their separate tasks until lunch, though Harry jumped between the groups to make sure that everyone was keeping on task. Seamus and Dean were able to convince the House Elves to pack up a small feast for the group and Ginny and Hermione laid out a picnic blanket the size of a large tent for everyone to gather on.

"Hey." Draco smiled as he came to sit next to Harry, instantly cuddling into the boy. "We're making really good progress, I was honestly a bit doubtful when you said you wanted us to build a house, but I think we're doing pretty well." Instead of responding, Harry simply smiled, leaning in to kiss the boy gently.

"Well, I couldn't have organized all of this without you." A light blush rose on Draco's cheek which made Harry smile even more. He loved making the boy blush and strived to do so as much as he could, his friend's presence be damned. Plus Draco always seemed to react more in front of them so it was just an added bonus to him.

"Listen to him, it's like we haven't done a thing." Seamus complained in good nature and Dean shoved him gently rolling his eyes.

"Leave them alone, won't you? Always getting in everyone's business." The look they exchanged was fond though and left everyone laughing along with them.

Watching from her spot a little off to the side, Pansy couldn't help but be in awe. She'd been staying with Blaise and Draco for just over two weeks and in such a short time she had been easily welcomed into the tight knit group before her. For the first time since starting school she felt as if she had finally found a place where she belonged, like she'd finally found her family.

"What are you thinking about?" Luna's far off gaze was uncharacteristically fixed on the Slytherin making her jump, though she would never admit it. Luna was the only one out of the group that Pansy didn't really understand. She respected the girl, if the many strides in their research made by her were anything to go on, but on a personal level, the blonde always made her feel a bit on edge.

"Just that this is nice- this friendship."

"-this family." Luna said at the same time and against her better judgement, Pansy found herself laughing. "We are a family, though, and you are included."

"Thank you." Feeling more comfortable than before, Pansy shifted, so she was sitting a little closer to the others and Hermione, on her other side, stopped what she was saying to Ron and turned to smile at her.

"Luna's right, you know." It was a quiet whisper, but Pansy heard her just fine. Out of all of her new family, Hermione seemed to understand her immense dislike for unnecessary attention and she was glad that both girls beside her were not causing a scene. "I'm glad you reached out to us, we couldn't have done all of this without you either."

"Thank you." Pansy didn't have to explain that she was thinking them for more than a chance at a new life. She was thankful that they were taking such good care of Draco and Blaise, that they didn't question her every move like she, as a Slytherin, would have done in their place. She didn't have to say any of that because Hermione and Luna seemed to understand her pretty well already and they both just smiled and nodded, Hermione returning to her conversation with Ron and Luna to her lunch. Looking around the group, Pansy felt a sudden weight lift from her shoulders and for the first time in a long time she felt like she was finally home.

After they finished eating lunch, the groups went back to their jobs. Harry continued to oversee everyone and was more than impressed with the progress that they made. They stopped working when the sun began to set just as they had planned. The foundation for the house was set and the frame work was complete. It stood an impressive three stories and promised to hold more than enough rooms to house all of Junior Order members who would need a safe place to live during holidays. The walls were also in the beginning stages, the major hold up being the intensive magic that needed to be cast in each board to insure the house's protection was even better than Hogwarts could ever hope to be. After insuring that everything was packed up correctly and that the many protective spells around the lot of land were still working, the group apparated back to the shrieking shack and turned the time turn back to that morning.

"I'm sure most of you are pretty tired and want to go back up to the castle, but please remember the time, everyone should spend at least a few hours in Hogsmeade before returning as to not arouse suspicions." Harry reminded everyone as they got their bearings.

"Also we should stick to larger groups, just in case. I know that Astoria and Nott are no longer on school grounds, but that doesn't mean that anyone is safe." Hermione started in her typical mothering tone and all those who were use to it just rolled their eyes. A chorus of "Yes Mum." trickled through the group though it mostly dissolved into fits of laughter when Hermione returned their wit with her signature glare.

"Why don't we sneak off?" Draco whispered in Harry's ear as their friends began to head off in small, unassuming groups. "I'm sure no one will miss us." Draco's tongue licked a gentle path up the shell of Harry's ear making the boy shutter and his eyes close. "I'm sure I can think of plenty of things that we could do to kill time."

"Oh yeah? Why don't you enlighten me." Harry grinned wolfishly, his eyes opening wide, his pupils blown wide. Swiftly, he pulled out his invisibility cloak and threw it over both of them. Harry pulled Draco close so the two could make haste toward the castle. Harry walked behind Draco, one arm wrapped around Draco's waist, while the other was moving up the boy's heavy sweater, under his robes, ghosting lightly over his pale skin.

"Watch it or we're never going to make it back." Draco said trying to sound threatening, but any hope died on his lips when he let out a hissing gasp as Harry's calloused fingertips pinched down lightly on his nipple.

"Oh I'm sure we could manage." Harry grinned, nipping at his lover's ear before pulling him flush against his own body, pulling the cloak tight around them before apparating them directly to their common room. The boys stumbled apart long enough for Harry to toss the cloak aside and to rip off his own robe while he watched Draco do the same. Before the other boy had enough time to also remove his sweater Harry moved in on him again, wrapping his arms fully around his waist and pulling him in for a searing kiss. Draco moaned into it, granting Harry access to his mouth, allowing their tongues to meet as the boys fought for dominance.

Draco's hands moved up Harry's sides under his clothes, dancing over the many scars that decorated his skin. He had asked the boy about them once, but the look he had gotten in return, the dead look that seemed to see through Draco and not actually see him had shaken the boy to his core. He never asked again, but he always made sure to kiss and lick everywhere, to worship Harry's body and let the boy know that no matter what his past held, he would always love him. This time, he moved his hands from the scars on the boy's side and instead moved his hands to his sensitive back. Draco's hands were less gentle as he dug the pads of his fingers into Harry's spine, slowly working out every knot they could find. Moaning, Harry let his body relax into Draco's touch, letting his mate take the lead.

Draco didn't often dominate in the bedroom and while he didn't mind, he reveled in it when Harry let go fully. Quickly, Draco moved them to their room, kicking the door open roughly and tossing what little clothing they had on aside. By the time he had Harry spread out on the bed they were both naked and panting. A thin layer of sweat lay on Draco's skin and made it that much easier for his body to slide up Harry's. The friction was enough to send both boys into a frenzy and Harry's encouraging words easily slipped into parseltongue.

" _Right there baby. Yes._ " Harry hissed, spurring Draco on. His kisses turned to bites and he made sure to leave a path trailing down his lover's chest, careful to sooth each bruising bite with a gentle kiss. Harry's hips arched in an attempt to get Draco to touch him lower, but Draco made sure to hover just out of reach.

"If you keep that up I'll have to tie you down." Draco warned, receiving him another deep moan from the dark-haired boy. "Is that what you want? Do you want to be under my complete and total control?"

" _Yes_." Harry hissed again and Draco grinned. After enough time spent with Harry he was able to understand a few words in the dark language. Bondage was not new to their foreplay, but Harry had never voiced wanting to be tied up himself.

"Are you sure love?" Draco asked just to be sure. He didn't want Harry to feel as if he had to let Draco be in complete control. He didn't want it to be something that the other boy regretted in the morning. Instead of responding vocally, Harry took Draco's hand and wrapped it firmly around his member. Harry was harder than Draco had ever felt him which was answer enough for the blond.

It didn't take much more convincing and soon Harry's arms and legs were secured to the bed. Draco was straddling his stomach, staying clear away form his aching cock on purpose much to Harry's displeasure. Curling his body down so he could reach his neck, Draco gently sucked on Harry's earlobe, whispering dirty words in Harry's ear.

"I bet you just love to be tied up by me. Just imagine all of the things that I'm going to do to you. Doesn't it just drive you crazy that I'm in control?"

"Watch it, love, I can still get out of this bonds if I wanted to." Harry grinned and Draco kissed him in response.

"True, but then you would never know what I have planned for you." Draco could see that he had Harry's full attention and he continued his path down his body.

The heat in the room was steadily climbing and Draco knew just the trick to drive Harry wild. It was near impossible to do magic around the boy without him picking up on it, but luckily Harry was so worked up that he didn't notice the small bucket of ice that Draco conjured sitting on the nightstand, nor did he notice when Draco took a piece and put it in his mouth.

" _Merlin_." Harry screamed when he felt the ice touch his hips. His eye flew open and his pupils were blown wide. Draco looked up to meet them with a huge smirk on his face. He continued to kiss along his hips and upper thighs until the ice was gone and only his mouth was cold. He repeated the process twice, once on each of Harry's nipples, soaking the sounds that he was making. "If you keep this up, I won't last long." Harry managed to say between moans.

"Don't you worry love." Draco grinned. He reached over to the drawer of the nightstand and took out a toy that Harry couldn't see. Carefully, Draco reached behind his back and slipped a cock ring on Harry, grinning when the other boy realized what was happening. He then made quick work of preparing himself, making sure not to stretch himself too much. He loved the feel of Harry filling him completely and he knew that the extra tightness would drive the green-eyed boy crazy especially since his cock was over sensitive with the ring on.

Slowly, Draco lowered himself on his lover, making sure to keep his eyes open to watch the look of pure ecstasy wash over Harry's face. He kept a slow and controlled pace at first, forcing himself to allow for a long, agonizing buildup. By then Harry was babbling nonsense in parseltongue which only drove Draco on further. Before he knew it, Draco lost control of the slow tempo and was bouncing up and down on Harry hard and fast.

"Draco, the ring." Harry gasped when he could feel Draco getting closer and his walls tightened even further around him. Being too far gone, Draco undid the lock on the ring with magic. The sudden release made Harry see stars and he exploded into Draco with a loud cry. Draco was soon to follow, climaxing as soon as he felt his lover's seed spill into him.

Boneless and spent, Draco let his body fall onto Harry's. Just like the powerful wizard had promised, he undid his own bonds and wrapped his arms securely around his mate.They lay there for what seemed like hours, trying to catch their breath and waiting of their heart beats to slow **.**


	19. Chapter 19

_The halls leading to the court room was pitch black and it took Harry a while to allow his eyes to adjust. None of the candles were lit and on a second look, he realized that there were no candles. A shiver ran down Harry’s spine then and he reached to his hip for his wand. Ice cold fear erupted through him as he realized that he was unarmed and completely alone. Slowing down to a complete stop, he allowed himself to even out his breathing, sliding into his animagus with his next step._

_Walking in his second skin always felt easier. Grace didn’t come to his human form naturally so his second skin was more comfortable in many ways then he could ever feel as his real self. His keen ears caught hushed voices further down the corridor and he prowled closer, keeping his entire lean body hidden in shadows._

_“Are you sure you have the boy's full trust?”_

_“I would not say full trust My Lord. He trusts Draco explicitly, but I know that they both are not sure what to make of me.”_

_“Do not lie to me, Severus, you know what I do to liars.” The unmistakable hiss of Nagini made Harry recoil. Even though he could not understand her in this form, the tone was clearly threatening and Harry had to wonder if he would have to run in and save the spy._

_“I would never lie to you, My Lord. I live to serve you. Have I ever caused you to doubt me?”_

_“I tire of this conversation. Return to the school and make sure that the boy trusts you. You will need to be in the correct position when Dumbledore falls.” The last phrase was said with utter hate and made the panther’s blood boil. Even with all of the things that the old wizard had done, he still did not deserve to die, especially by the hands of someone so cowardly as Voldemort._

_“I know my role, I just am not sure if things will happen just as you intend. Nott and Greengrass might be gone, but their actions have caused an irreversible chain of events. They are just as much of a nuisance gone as they were in the school. We also have no plan to bring the old man down.”_

_“My boy, you have always known the true plan, you cannot be that dull.”_

_“I’m not sure I know, My Lord.”_

_“Don’t play coy, you have always been the plan.”_

_“Me?”_

_“Yes, you were always the one who was meant to kill the daftest wizard who ever lived.”_

Harry awoke from his dream with a start. Instantly strong arms circled around him and Draco’s sleep-stained eyes met his. His cold hand drew calming circles on Harry’s bare back and wordlessly the boy understood that Harry was not quite ready to speak. It felt like long hours passed before any noise beyond the dark-haired boy’s heavy breathing penetrated the room.

“What’s wrong, love?” Draco asked softly and Harry shook his head, trying to rid his mind of the sleep induced fog that hung behind his eyes.

“A dream, just a nightmare.” Harry knew that he was saying it for his own benefit, not Draco’s. If he could convince himself that it was only a dream then maybe it would be true. Though that had never been the case in the past. “Get Hermione for me, please. And Severus.”

“What’s wrong, love?” Draco asked again, though he was getting up from their bed and throwing on clothes that were scattered around the room. They had fallen asleep after their enthusiastic lovemaking and it was just past dinner. They had managed to sleep through the whole day that they had used the time turner to get back. If he was lucky, both Hermione and Severus would be at dinner, getting them back up to the dorm without causing a scene would be another matter. “I’ll be right back, love, you might want to put something on, though.” Harry seemed to come to at the comment and a pretty little blush crossed his face.

“Just hurry.” The fear clinging to his lover’s voice was enough to scare Draco. The blond nodded and kissed him soundly on the lips before racing off to find the bookworm and the bat.

* * *

“Have you seen Hermione?” Draco asked, sitting down next to Ron who was stuffing his face.

“No she went back early after Hogsmeade.” Blaise supplied from across the table. “Where did you come from anyway? Isn’t it still a bit dangerous for you to be walking about alone?”

“Not now, Harry’s upset and he asked for Hermione and Severus.” All eyes of the core traveled to the Head Table. Severus was noticeably not in attendance. “Where is everyone today?”

“What’s he upset about?” Ginny asked concerned and Luna and Pansy leaned in to listen.

“Honestly, I’m not sure, he said it was just a nightmare-”

“Merlin not again. Did he say what it was about?” Ron asked, the blood draining from his face fast and he put his food down, pushing the plate aside.

“No, but I don’t get it, he said it was just a dream.”

“It’s not just a dream mate, we need to get back to him. Neville, Luna go get Hermione, we’ll have to find Snape later. Gin you should come back with us.” Ron barked out orders and the rest of the junior order waited for instructions.

“The rest of you stay here, we don’t need to draw even more unwanted attention.” Ginny  said before getting up and following her brother. “Draco you’re going to want to come with us.”

“I don’t get it, what’s happening?” Draco hissed when the three made it out of the Great Hall and into the main entrance way. “I’m not stupid, I know there is something happening, but Harry kept insisting that it was a dream. What could be so bad about a dream? And why did he need Hermione and Sev?”

“Did Harry ever tell you about what was happening to him last year? The real reason why we went into the Department of Mysteries and why he thought that Sirius was in danger?” When Draco shook his head, Ginny sighed. “It’s not really up to us to tell you, it’s Harry’s story, but what it boils down to is that Harry’s dreams are not always dreams.”

“Not here, Gin, it’s not safe.” Ron chided and the three fell into a tense silence.

Ron lead the way back to Gryffindor territory. There were still a few students coming and going from dinner so the odd trio didn’t draw much attention. It wasn’t until they made it past the tower, into the secluded hallway that housed the head of house’s rooms that Ron stopped and turned to face the blond. “Harry’s mind is linked to Voldemort’s.”

“I’m sorry, what?” Draco nearly yelled and Ginny shushed him, shooting her brother a pointed glare.

“When Voldemort had a particularly strong feeling, Harry would see it in his dreams. The thing is, Voldemort found out and used it against him. He had made him think Sirius was in danger, but it wasn’t real, it was a planted memory. When he came into his power this summer he would have used all of his energy to block out the connection. If it’s open again then that can only mean very bad things.” Ginny explained calmly, eyeing her brother to make sure he wasn’t about to say something else blunt and ruin whatever calm was holding Draco together.

“But why does he want Hermione and Severus?” Draco asked again and Ginny shrugged.

“Why don’t you ask him?” The voice of Godric made all three of them jump. “He’s waiting for you in your room. Would you like me to tell him you’re on your way up?”

“If you haven’t already.” Draco rolled his eyes and the portrait laughed.

“Too right, Draco, now the password please, your partner grows impatient,” Draco muttered the password and the door swung open allowing the three to enter. There was a fire burning in the hearth and a familiar face waiting for them on the couch. Hermione sat with her lips pursed and her hands clasped tight.

“The others are looking for you, when did you get here?” Draco asked, stopping short, something didn’t feel right, but if she had gotten in then it had to be Hermione. Godric was very careful about who he let into their rooms.

“Just a moment ago, but Harry seems to have magically locked the door to your rooms. And it is me, I know what you’re thinking, I just came back to pick up my potions book, I left it here last night.” Draco and Hermione took a moment longer to stare at each other before he backed down, accepting that it was in fact her.

“I’m sorry, everything that’s been happening has gotten me paranoid.” Draco shook his head to clear his thoughts and the Gryffindor nodded her understanding. “I’m going to go try and talk to him.”

“Good luck mate, he can be even more stubborn than me when he puts his mind to it.” Ron moved to sit with Hermione, wrapping his arm around her while Ginny took Harry’s usual seat by the fire, resigned to sitting and waiting with the others.

Draco took the short walk to their bedroom door to compose his thoughts. Part of him was hurt that, despite everything Harry shared with him, the trio in their common room still seemed to know more about the raven haired boy. He knew that it wasn’t like his lover had purposely not mentioned something, Draco knew that with all of the drama and stress that Harry was already going through he had little time to dwell on little else. While something as important as Voldemort sharing a bit of his mind seemed like a rather large deal to the blond, he couldn’t help but feel like it fell a bit short on the dark haired boy’s list of priorities. When he finally found himself at their closed bedroom door, Draco took another deep breath before knocking.

“It’s just me, love. I’ve gone and gotten Hermione, but Sev isn’t in the castle.” The door clicked and opened slowly, something Draco assumed Harry had done with just a pinch of the large amount of magic he had at his command.

Gingerly, Draco pushed the door the rest of the way open. If he had been expecting something of a dramatic entrance he was sorely disappointed. The room hardly looked like anything had changed since he’d run from it, frantic to find their friends. Even Harry seemed to be lying in generally the same position that he had left him in. Slowly, as if not to startle the man, Draco sat on the edge of the bed, drawing continuous circular patterns on his lover’s side, coaxing him to speak without speaking himself.

“I’m sorry.” The small whisper nearly broke Draco’s heart and he sunk into the bed fully, pulling the dark-haired boy until Draco was underneath him, his arms fully encircling him.

“What are you sorry for?” Draco whispered and he could feel more then hear Harry’s unsteady breathing. “You don’t have to be sorry about anything.”

"I hid something from you again. The dream I just had wasn't really a dream."

"Sh, it's okay love. Ron and Ginny explained a little bit and I don't blame you, you should tell us what happened though." Draco whispered as if speaking any louder would spook the boy.

"Did you find them?" If Harry was bothered that his friends had divulged his secrets he didn't show it.

"Hermione stopped by to pick up the book that she left so she's already here, but Sev wasn't at dinner."

Harry paled considerably at his words. He moved from the bed faster than Draco thought he was able to in his current state and Draco followed after the boy filled with dread. By the time he reached the common room the entire core of the Junior Order was sitting around Harry. Severus was still obviously missing. Harry was situated on the couch between Ginny and Blaise and his brother moved aside for Draco to squish between them. When it seemed that everyone was settled all eyes fell on Harry and the both began to speak, albeit with a shaky voice.

"As some of you know last year I was having dreams that turned out to be shared visions of Voldemort's whereabouts and actions. He used this tool to plant a false memories of my godfather being tortured in the Department of Mysteries. We all know how that ended." The silence in the room was palpable. Those who had no knowledge of Harry's connection to Voldemort kept their thoughts to themselves, there would be time to ask questions later. "I had a dream tonight of Severus speaking with Voldemort. The conversation did not seem to be going well, but I have no reason to believe that he is hurt. I was asking for Hermione mostly because she knows the most about mental magic between all of us. I just wanted to see if she could help me assess my mental wards."

"I could, but I think your abilities had exceeded my knowledge." Hermione admitted which caused a small smile to stretch on Harry's face.

"Should we try to reach Sev?" Draco asked bringing the two back on track.

"I'm not sure. I don't quite understand how time works between the visions and real time. I don't know if he's there with him now and if we send him a message if that might blow his cover."

"Well there must be something that we can do." Pansy asked.

“There might be.” Hermione conceded. “Harry you can send your patronus and give it specific directions. You can tell it not to deliver your message until it is sure that Severus is alone. You’ve shown that your magic is powerful enough already I’m sure that it will work.”

Harry looked to Draco first and waited for the blond to nod. He knew that Hermione was right, he should be powerful enough for it to work, but Severus was Draco’s Godfather and he could not put someone so special to Draco at risk. The boy nodded back with little hesitation. It still surprised Harry just how much those who loved him trusted him, but he was no less grateful for it. He signed, summoning his strength before brandishing his wand. He thought of early that day, how it had felt to work the house with his friends and then return to lay in his lover’s arms. With the feeling of pure happiness sitting in his chest, Harry spoke the spell that he had used more times than a boy his age should have. His panther sprang from the wand and walked a circle around the room before sitting before Harry expecting orders.

“Find Severus. Only go to him if he is completely alone and it is safe. Tell him that we need him to return to the castle post haste. He will understand.” The panther nodded as if to show it understood before taking off into the night.

“Everything is going to be okay, Harry.” Ginny said quietly, reassuring not only the boy, but everyone in the room. She moved even closer to pull the boy closer as the color began to return to his cheeks.

* * *

Severus was tired. The war had taken its toll and he was starting to truly feel his age for the first time since it had all begun. He had once thought that being a spy would keep him young, but he knew now that it would age him faster in the end. He had been summoned by the Dark Lord and had been surprised to find themselves in the halls of the Ministry and not in the halls of Malfoy Manor as he had expected. It would seem that the man hadn’t been lying when he said he still had contacts in the Ministry, but he it seemed he still did not trust Severus enough to tell him who. There were too many things being hidden from the man and he hated knowing that his life lay in the balance because those who thought him trustworthy enough to employ did not believe him trustworthy enough to know the secrets that he worked to help keep.

He had returned from their meeting knowing more about Voldemort’s plan, however, and he found that it helped him little. He had known that Draco had never been the intended murder, but he had never thought that Voldemort would task him to strike down the old wizard. Things must be becoming drastic if Voldemort thought that having Severus openly turn on the Light was necessary for his plans. He would have to report his findings to Dumbledore, but he supposed that he deserved a stiff drink first if nothing else. Of course that would be the moment that a panther patronus leapt through the door and sat in front of him with expectant eyes.

“Severus, come back to the castle post haste. We need you.” Harry’s voice fell from the patronus’ lips. Of course the brat needed him now. He did truly respect the boy, but he’d had enough of being summoned for a lifetime. It seemed that Dumbledore and that drink would have to wait.

Severus made his way from his quarters to the opposite side of the castle. It was just past dinner and he had missed it. He wondered if stopping by the kitchens was possible, but he thought of Harry and the rest of the core which would be waiting for him no doubt and thought better of it. The boy’s message had been clear and he had sound scared, not a common emotion for the boy who had seen more in his lifetime than any person should. He would have to stop to care for himself after he spoke to the children and after he spoke to Dumbledore. The man was standing trial in a week and Minerva had taken over for him, but he still resided in the Headmaster’s quarters until he was called to the Ministry.

The castle was blessedly quiet and he made it to the old Gryffindor head of house quarters without incident. Godric let him in with a quiet muttering of the password. He moved out of the portrait most likely to warn the group of his arrival. When he stepped fully into the common area he found a sizable meal already placed on the table. There was a platter of vegetables and potatoes. A small ham was already cut into pieces and a boat of gravy sat besides a bowl of mashed potatoes. Harry and Draco were sitting at the table eating while the rest of the core sat about the fire. At further inspection there was a plate that seemed to be set up for Severus with what appeared to be a tumbler of fine whisky waiting with it.

“I am not even going to question how you got your hands on the liquor.” Severus sagged into the seat and began to fill his plate. “I hope that you don’t mind that I eat before we start this meeting.” Draco and Harry seemed just as famished and he briefly wondered why they had missed dinner, but he filed the thought as unimportant. He was grateful that the children seemed care more for him than his two supposed masters. They ate in silence and the rest respected their need for space. Severus felt the weight of the night’s events slowly begin to lift.

“I had another vision.” Harry final spoke when Severus was done. The lightness in his chest vanished instantly. “You just saw him, didn’t you? You met in the Ministry this time.”

“I did.” Severus knew that Harry had been blocking out the visions since the battle at the Ministry in the spring. He was surprised and worried that they were returning.

“He told you that it was up to you to do it.” Harry said without clarifying. Severus knew that the boy was hoping that his vision was a lie.

“Yes. He told me that he had never intended for Draco to kill Dumbledore. He had always known he would fail. He expects me to do it.”

The gasps that flew through the room sounded like a buzzing in his ears. He watched as they looked first to each other and then back to him. He expected distrust or even accusation, but every child in the room only looked at him with worry and sympathy. At some point in the past few weeks the children who had feared and despised him had grown to care for him. It was quite unexpected and yet he saw the way they had taken to Blaise and Draco and even to Pansy and it seemed to make sense. They had such big hearts and he wasn’t sure if he deserved a spot in them, but he would take it. Someone had to watch out for him and if the only ones who would do that were his Godson and his friends then he would just have to accept it.

“We have to move faster than I thought. The house needs to be complete and soon. If Voldemort means for you to kill Dumbledore it will have to happen before he is sent from the castle which means it must happen within the week. Once that happens none of us will be safe here.” Harry spoke and everyone seemed to nod together then.

“Then it’s decided we finish the house and begin to make a plan on who is going to stay at the house and who will stay in the castle to watch over the kids who can’t come with us.” Draco spoke and it seemed to finalized the thoughts in all of their minds.

“Well then it’s getting later I’m sure we can work out a plan in the morning.” Hermione spoke breaking the spell that seemed to fall over them. “Meet back here in the morning. We’ll keep you up to date, Professor.” Hermione could never quite get over calling the man by his given name and he couldn’t help, but smirk at her manners.

“I must speak with Dumbledore too, he will have his own plans I’m sure.” He leveled Harry and Draco with a meaningful look. He knew that the two would want to speak to him further about their own plans and the boys nodded back in return. He could hardly believe that the fate of the wizarding world was riding on the shoulders of children, but at least these children seemed to have their heads on straight. There just might be hope yet.


	20. Chapter 20

Severus was sure that his day would never end by the time he had reached the former Headmaster’s quarters. He had left the Junior Order after he’d finished his meal with the promise of speaking to Harry and Draco privately when they had the time. He trusted the others as Draco trusted them and he knew that his Godson was not easily fooled. Harry was a good kid who highly regarded the trust of his friends, but even he seemed to understand that there were some conversations that were best to have in small audiences. He was tired to his very core; if he concentrated he was sure that even his magical core was exhausted, but he didn’t have time to dwell on such things. His night would not be over until he spoke to his last master and he knew this conversation would be a long one.

He let himself into Dumbledore’s quarters with ease. The door was guarded by an old wizard who spent more of his time sleeping than actually awake. He Severus on sight and had opened his eyes long enough to swing the door open slowly before he was fast asleep again. Dumbledore was sitting by the hearth with a set of tea for two as if he had been expecting him. For all he knew, he was. The old wizard had always seemed to know more than he should and yet he seemed to be mostly unaware of Harry and his friends and their scheming. In the poor light of the dying fire, the former Headmaster looked older than ever, his tired eyes filled with something that looked like regret. If he hadn’t been witness to the man’s acts of insanity in the past few months Severus might honestly feel remorse for him.

“How are you, my boy?” Clear blue eyes pierced into Severus and he had half the mind to strengthen the shields around his mind, but he knew that this master would not push into where he did not belong.

“Wonderful.” Severus intoned, his voice dry.

Dumbledore hardly seemed bothered by his lack of enthusiasm which only lead to further infuriate the potions master. “Come now, what seems to be the matter?”

Severus could hardly understand how serene the man could sound in the face of all the scrutiny he was up against. Had he not already questioned the man’s sanity he would find himself doing so then. “I just returned from another summons.”

“What have we learned?” Dumbledore’s razor focus was suddenly on him and Severus felt his skin crawl. It did him well to be reminded that there was still some shred of a sharp mind under the insanity. He was playing a dangerous games on both fronts and it was about time he remembered that.

“It seems that the Dark Lord had expected Draco to fail his task-”

“That much was obvious.”

“Let me finish,” Severus growled, more than tired with the games his masters seemed to want him to play. “He expected Draco to fail and he expects me to take his place.”

“Well that much does make sense,” Dumbledore responded after a healthy pause.

“Excuse me?”

“Who better than the man I trust most to be my killer?” Dumbledore spoke as if he were merely providing the weather for the week. “Yes, I suppose I had known that was his plan all along, but the confirmation-“ He trailed off as if lost in his own thoughts.

“What do we do?”

“Well you’re going to have to kill me, of course.”

If Severus had been a lesser man he might have gasped or even protested; he would have opened his mouth in shock and maybe even gaped. He was not a lesser man however. He might have been a half-blood, but had grown up in the company of purebloods who had such high standards it but the children of the current generation to shame. No, Severus was not a man of such low standards and so he sat in silence instead. He was sure that if he waited out the old man then there would come an explication, or maybe he’d find that he’d heard him wrong. He stared at the old wizard and he stared back. Minutes passed and it seemed that he was going to be getting no such explication.

“Oh, is that all?” Severus couldn’t help, but fall back on the snark that had gotten him through most of the conversations he’d rather avoid in his life.

“You heard me, boy. You are going to have to kill me. This cannot be a shock to you. I have known this since young Draco came through my door with Harry in toe. This has been the inevitable and I am surprised that you have not seen it.”

Severus supposed that he had seen it coming. He had known that Draco was meant to fail, at least, and he knew that there would have been another plan set in place. He had been blinded by it more because there had been larger things for him to worry about. Besides playing the spy for two of the most dangerous wizards of their time, he also had to look after a scared Godson and a young hero who seemed to surprise him more at every turn. There had been more to follow than anyone could reasonably expect him to so it was excusable that he hadn’t seen this coming. At least he could rationalize that it was excusable, though the way that Dumbledore was looking at him told him that he really ought to have known all along.

“What are we going to do?”

“Well there needs to be a plan in place. There is no way to tell the others. If we are going to solidify in Voldemort’s mind that you are his man and his man alone then everyone in your life will have to believe that you did this of your own volition.”

Severus thought it highly unlikely that Draco or Harry would believe that and if they didn’t believe then neither would their band of student fighters. “You will be cast from the school in less than a week.”

“Yes, you will have to kill me before then. But I will have to kill this horcrux first. Therein lies the largest problem.”

Severus couldn’t see how that was their largest problem, but he didn’t know a way to voice that without sounding petulant. “Do we have any idea how you’re going to destroy it?”

“Yes. Harry will have to be there of course. He will need to help so he knows that he can do it. If he knows that his task can be accomplished then he will have a hope in this war.”

“You're going to put the boy through that? I’m sure you don’t intend to tell him that you are to be killed shortly after.”

“There is no gain in telling him. No he will have to learn to grow up and accept the losses of war.”

Severus might not care much for Harry as a child of James Potter, but he cared an awful lot for Harry as the one person on the Earth who might care more for Draco than he did. He could not see a reason not to warn the boy. “Don’t you think Black’s death has taught him that already?”

“Regrettable as that was, it is only the start. The boy needs to learn to be on his own. He cannot rely on anyone in the end.”

“That is hardly true.” Severus could not conceive a world where Harry would ever try be alone. There were too many that loved and cared for him. Draco alone would never leave the boy’s side. And loath as he was to admit it, the band of unruly teens that had come to Harry’s aid would never let the boy face anything alone again. It didn’t seem like a good idea to tell Dumbledore of this, however. The man was paranoid enough as it were and he did not need to add to this.

“Do you really think that he would let young Draco follow him into what will certainly be his own doom? He has heard the prophecy at this point. One cannot live without the other. He is a child, but he must know what that means.”

He had a point. Harry would most likely not let Draco follow him into danger, but Draco would also not allow himself to be left behind. Either way the point wasn’t worth arguing. “When will you take the boy to destroy the ring?”

“In a few days. You do not plan on telling him of your recent meeting, do you?”

“Not telling him seems the wisest course of action.” Severus wasn’t sure if Dumbledore actually believed that he hadn’t already talked to the boy, but he had learned a long time ago that allowing those who believed they were in power to believe that they had more power of you than they had always worked to your advantage.

“Good. I want him to have a little more time to enjoy being a child. I fear that the luxury won’t last through the week.”

Severus couldn’t find an appropriate response to the sentiment. “Am I free to go?”

“Oh yes, my boy. You must be tired. I think it’s best if I tell Harry that I need to speak with him. I fear his trust in you could still use some work.” The look he received told him that Dumbledore very seriously doubted his own words, but Severus knew better than to push his luck.

“Of course. Whatever you think is best.” It was harder to to choke out the words than it was to push down the bile that threatened to rise as a reaction to them. “Good night, Sir.”

The night was cold which suited Severus’ mood just fine. He would have to warn Harry about Dumbledore’s plans. It startled him to think that he was willingly going to the boy he thought he hated, but it was obvious now that he was the only true hope to see this war to an end that did not result in Voldemort as the victor. He was much too tired to follow the rest of that train of thought and so he put it to rest. The next week would be a hard one, but the following lifetime he would have to face until his true place in the war came to light would be even worse. He didn’t much care in the end who knew what he had done for the Light. He had done enough bad in his lifetime that this one good deed was an attempt to redeem for all he had done and nothing more. In the end if he could make up for all that he’d allowed to come to pass and at least Draco knew that he was at least a decent man in the end than he would be satisfied. If he were in a more optimistic mood he might shoot for happy, but he was much too tired to think like that.

He made it to his rooms and sank into his bed with little fanfare. Even with all that was going on the last thing Severus thought of before sleep claimed him was Narcissa alone in her cage and how if there was any justice in the world she would be free by the end of the war.

 

* * *

Harry lay awake long after Severus left. The rest of the core went about their nightly routines and before long he and Draco had found themselves in bed alone again. The nap he’d taken left in feeling awake, but the stress from the dream made it so feeling refreshed was out of the question. Draco was asleep beside him. It seemed that the stress had tired him out and Harry could hardly deprive him of sleep for something as selfish as wanting someone to stay awake with him.

“Why are you still awake?” Draco mumbled as he turned onto his side to sling an arm around his lover. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing, go back to sleep.” Harry tried to soothing, but the words made Draco’s eyes open further and scrutinize him.

“What’s wrong? You know there’s no point in lying to me.”

“You’re right.” Harry smiled despite himself. “I’m just worried.”

“You’re going to have to elaborate, love.” Draco sighed and propped himself up with the arm that was not steadily pulling Harry closer. “I’m worried to, about a lot of things, but what’s keep you up now?”

“I suppose I’m most worried about how I am going to accomplish this. I’ve grown up being told that I must do these things to win a war and I’ve never really thought about how I was going to do it. It’s just something that everyone expect of me and I rather expected that when the time came I’d feel more prepared somehow.”

“You do realize how ridiculous you’re being right?” Harry glared at him and Draco rolled his eyes in a way so strange and yet familiar that it startled a laugh from the Gryffindor. “Really, you have so many plans that I can’t imagine an instance that we’re not going to be prepared for. We have the house and the others who are working with us to complete it. We have a secret organization inside a not as secret organization and while there might not be explicit directions on how to run it when the time comes that we’ll have to leave this place they will be able to run themselves even if we’re not here.

“We have friends not just our age, but in adults outside of these castle walls that would come to your aid without question because of the faith they have in you. There are so many people out there who will be there when you need them most and not because you ask, but because they want to be. And most importantly, you have me. Even if it seems too much to handle I’m going to be right there with you sorting out what to do next. I am never going to let you feel like you have to taken on the burden of winning this war alone again because you are  never going to be alone again. Do you understand me? No matter what happens I will always be here to support you. We are going to win this war, not because of some damn prophecy or the meddling of crazy old wizards. We are going to win this war because we have each other and I have faith in the fact that with us and our friends we will find a way.”

By the end of his impassioned speech Harry found tears that he hadn’t know were building up in him running freely down his face. Draco, who seemed more prepared for them was already there, wiping them away the best that he could while cradling Harry to his chest.

“I love you so much.” Harry managed through shaky breath and while he was sure he didn’t say it in quite the way he meant to, Draco understood all the same.

“I love you, too. You’ll see. We’re going to find a way to end this war. Now let’s go to bed, love. I’m sure someone or something else is going to try and spell the rug from under us tomorrow and I don’t know about you, but I’d like to be prepared for it.”

Instead of responding, Harry rolled closer into Draco’s arms and willed his mind to quiet and allow him some rest. Draco was right, there was nothing to be bad for staying up all night and worrying and with another day promising more problems on the horizon.

 

* * *

Draco sat at the large table in the common room as the the hour struck noon. It was Sunday and it seemed that the strenuous work of building a house from the day before had caused most of the core to sleep in. Harry was still snoring away the last he checked and the common room was strangely empty. The day previous had been strenuous on all of them due to the sheer amount of magic they had used. Draco was feeling how his body protested when he used simple spells and he had made a light breakfast of eggs and toast the muggle way, thankful that Harry had taught him how. They had all agreed to meet back in their common room around one and Draco found it surprisingly enjoyable to spend the time alone in the quiet. He loved his friends immensely, but it wasn’t often he got any relaxation in his life. A stirring from the direction of Blaise and Ginny’s room signaled the girl’s arrival. The silence was nice, but Draco certainly wouldn’t mind a little company.

“Good morning, love.” Ginny sang, swooping down to drop a kiss on his cheek before playfully sashaying to the kitchen. “Or afternoon, I suppose.”

“You’re in an awfully good mood.”

“Well yesterday was a tiring day, but I can honestly say I had a pretty good night.” The leer on his face made Draco laugh and she joined him at the table with a fresh cuppa.

“I’m very glad to hear that. Will Blaise be joining us soon, or have you tired him out?”

“Oh, he’ll be along soon I’m sure.” Ginny stole the final piece of toast from Draco’s forgotten plate. “I don’t remember the last time this room has been this empty or silent.”

“I was just thinking the same thing.” Draco mused. He moved to the couch and used what little magic he had in reserve to light the fire. The days were getting chilly and the castle always tended to be drafty. Ginny moved to sit with her, her slight body curled into his side. With Harry it might have felt intimate, but with Ginny he knew that the only love they held for each other was familial. “How are things going with the two of you?”

“Well,” Ginny’s smile was infectious. “He’s amazing, but I’m sure you already know that. I don’t know, I just feel really happy when I’m with him.”

“I’m really happy for the two of you. Blaise is a good guy and you both seem to really be good for each other.”

“Yeah. Even Ron, Fred, and George have been really supportive. I’m surprised, I used to think that the only guy they’d ever be okay with was Harry, but I’m glad for both of us that it isn’t the case.”

Draco couldn’t think of much to say in response so he just pulled Ginny closer and nestled deeper into the comfortable couch. Blaise and Harry joined them before long and the four settled into a companionable silence. Ginny left Draco’s side to join Blaise in the kitchen and Harry took up her vacated spot.

“Why didn’t you wake me?” Harry brushed his hands through Draco’s hair before pulling him for a deep kiss. “I missed you when I woke up.”

“You looked so relaxed, I thought I’d let you sleep a little longer.” Draco smiled, just happy to be so loved by someone much less someone as amazing as Harry. “But I’ll wake you up next time.”

“Good.” Harry leaned in for another kiss, this one much shorter, before pulling back again. “When are the other’s showing up?”

“Soon, it’s half past.”

“Okay, well I had an idea this morning, but I figured I’d ask you first since I’ll need your help.”

“Oh?” Draco smiled, his interest piqued. He knew that whatever Harry was talking about would have to do with the Junior Order. Harry wouldn’t have brought up something private in such an open area.

“Well we’re building a house, but no one has given anything thought to the furniture. We have a general blueprint, but nothing more than words on parchment. If this is going to be the home for the Junior Order, our home, then we’re going to need to outfit it.”

The romantic in Draco warmed at Harry saying  _ our _ home, but he would have to catalogue that conversation for another time. “That’s a very good point. So, what are you ideas?”

“Well I was thinking that between the Potter vaults and the Black vaults there has to be a good amount of furniture and other artifacts there that could be of use.”

Draco was surprised that Harry had mentioned his Godfather’s vaults so casually, but the boy had been healing over the past few months and he had been able to mention Sirius in casual conversation more frequently with each passing day. “That’s a pretty good idea, we’ll need to go with a few of us, or else we’ll have to find a way to bring it all back on our own.”

“I think Hermione will be able to help with that, she had mentioned something exciting she’d been working on, she didn’t go into much detail, but she said it would be good for traveling, especially on sudden notice. Something about being able to carry a lot on us at any given time.”

“Sounds interesting enough. When are we going to the vaults?”

“Soon, I need to make sure that all of the things we want to look at are converted to one vault, that way we don’t have to move between the two. The least amount of time we spend out in the open the better. I trust the goblins not to gossip about the dealings of wizards, but any passing wizard who might see us might not be so kind.”

“Very true, how do you plan on doing that?”

“The Black family house came with a house elf. I don’t trust him much, but I can at least ask him to have all of the furniture and books moved from both vaults into one. I can command him not to tell anyone, but I don’t really trust him beyond that. You’ll understand if I talk to him alone?”

“Of course.” Harry had promised not to keep secrets from him any longer. He knew that there would be times when he wouldn’t be there to help him, but at least he was being told beforehand.

“Okay enough talk about business, after the meeting today we’re going to have the rest of the day off. What are we going to do?”

“I don’t know, I’m usually the one thinking up of grand plans, maybe you can take this one?”

“Okay, I’m sure I can think of something.” Draco leaned in for another deep kiss and Harry was more than happy to comply.

“Okay love birds, break it up.” Ginny joked and she rejoined the two. The two broke apart which Ginny took as a sign to plop her body between the two.

“Why don’t you go out for a walk by the lake and have dinner down there? We did it last week and it was nice.” Blaise spoke as he settled in close to his brother. “You should go before it gets too cold.”

Draco met Harry’s eyes over Ginny’s head. “Sounds like a good plan to me.”

Before the pair could get carried away again the others came into the common room and the quiet spell was broken.

“We’ll finish this later.” Harry grinned. Draco couldn’t help, but smile. Sure he loved the quiet moments, but he also wouldn’t trade his new family for the world.


	21. Chapter 21

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry I know this one is short, I was running out of ideas for the main part of this chapter and I didn't really want to follow the books too closely either, so I was at a bit of a loss.

Harry would rather be anywhere than on his way to see Dumbledore late Monday night. He would rather be in bed with Draco or around the fire with his friends, he would rather be standing over a cauldron while Snape barked orders than walking into the unfamiliar territory of his former Headmaster’s rooms. He had the papers from Professor Williams and the window of time he had left to speak to the man before he was taken from the castle was closing. He knew it was more than likely that Snape would need to kill Dumbledore before he actually left the castle and as much as he hated the man the thought that this could be one of the last times he saw him left him feeling numb.

As always Dumbledore seemed to know that he was coming because the door that lead to his chambers was already open. He walked through the portrait of a Headmaster of old, though Harry couldn’t name who, and found a roaring fire already set. There was no one sitting on the plush couch, but there was tea set for two and a plate of desserts. Harry took a seat not bothering to help himself to the food or drink that was laid out to him. He knew that Dumbledore would never poison him, but he didn’t put it past him to try and slip veritaserum into his food. He hardly believed that the man had been fooled by his performance in the hospital wing and he didn’t put it past the old man to try and push Harry for the truth again. He didn’t intend to lie to the old wizard, but he knew that there were some things that were best left unsaid. Despite having fought off the effects of the potion in the past, Harry knew they was no point in becoming over confidant and believing that outsmarting the man was guaranteed.

Harry was not left to his own thoughts for long. Dumbledore emerged from behind a closed door looking serene as ever. His eyes landed on Harry without really seeing him before he took his own seat and making a show of preparing tea and arranging treats on a small plate. “Won’t you have a lemon cake, Harry? The elves make them especially for me and I must say they are the most delectable things I have ever had.” Dumbledore smiled at him like he used to. Harry wondered how the man could act as if nothing had happened between them since the start of the year.

“No thank you, Sir, I would prefer discussing the papers I procured from Professor Williams,” Harry replied evenly.

“Ah, that is a shame.” The sparkle that was always there disappeared for just a moment before returning to his old eyes. “Well straight to business. I hope he did not give you any trouble,” Dumbledore spoke over his tea cup. He was making it very clear that this meeting would be happening at the pace that he set. Harry wasn’t looking forward to spending the rest of his night playing games, but he would relent if it meant getting information that was vital to them winning the war.

“He was more than helpful.” If Dumbledore knew the lengths that Harry had gone through to get to much needed information he didn’t comment and the boy was more than happy to leave it that way. “Here is everything that he gave me. There is a lot of interesting theories mostly pertaining to how many horcruxes a person can make before the strain on their soul actually kills them.”

“The maximum is believed to be six if I am correct.” Dumbledore said without even glancing at the parchment.

“Yes, that is what Williams and his grandfather seem to believe. If you knew this already then why would you send me to get the information?” Harry asked hoping to keep his annoyance from showing, though he wasn’t sure just how successful he was.

“Would you have believed me if I told you?” Dumbledore leveled him with a fixed gaze before continuing to speak without allowing him to respond. “No I needed you to confirm it from the most reliable source.”

Harry paused taking in the old man’s words. He would not have believe Dumbledore, not truly after everything that had happened that year. He still didn’t like that the old man still treated him like a puppet to be moved about as he saw fit, but he let his annoyance recede. “What does this mean? Do you think Voldemort created these things? Do you actually think he created six?”

“Yes. You have come into contact with one of them already. The diary that you destroyed in your second year was no normal diary.”

“So he was able to speak to me because a part of his soul was stored in the book? Why would Malfoy Sr give the book to Ginny then?”

“Arrogance, most likely. If I am right, then there are only four more to find and destroy.”

“Four? Does that mean you’ve located and destroyed another? What and where is it?”

Dumbledore set the cup he had been slowly sipping from to delicately pull back the sleeve of his robe to show his blackened and dying hand. Sitting on his ring finger was a plain gold ring with a large black stone that had a noticeable crack down the center.

“What significance does it have to Voldemort?”

“This ring was one of the few heirlooms left from a minor pure blood family, the Gaunts. They were once a very prominent and important family, but poorly genes won out and their died off. It is believed that Tom Riddle’s mother was a daughter of the Gaunt line and when she’d married the name died with her. It was proof of his heritage and he would have used it to solidify in his mind that he came from good blood.”

Harry let the information sink it. It made sense, he supposed. If he was insane enough to rip his soul apart to keep from dying he would use sentimental objects as well, though it did seem rather dangerous. “So what are the others?”

“That is a good question.”

Harry wanted to scream in the old man’s face, but he restrained. This was obviously a waste of his time, but losing his cool now would just prolong the amount of time he was forced to spend away from his love and his friends. “How do you suggest we find the rest of the horcruxes?”

“You, Harry. You and your friends will need to work from here on alone, I’m afraid. This is likely to be the end of the road for me.”

Harry wasn’t sure if the man meant the end of his time at the school or if he truly meant that he was meeting his end. Harry knew that Snape had been forced to take the on the task that had been meant for Draco. He knew that the two would have plan in place for what was to come next, but it surprised Harry to see a man who seemed to believe himself above the rules admit that his life was over.

“What do you know that could help us?”

“The items that you will need to find will be ones that mean something to him. The diary was sentimental. As I already said, ring was owned by Riddle’s ancestors, the Gaunts, and it was most certainly a reminder for Tom that despite his muggle father’s heritage, he was a part of this world that he was trying to create.”

“So the other items will be from his family? If they weren’t prominent then how many artifacts will they have?” Harry was truly interested then. Loath as he was to admit it, this was information that could win them the war and there was no one else he could get it from.

“There wouldn’t have been much left from the Gaunts and even less that a young Riddle would have been able to obtain. No, there may be another avenue to look down. Riddle was an orphan who had no home and no family to call his own. He came to Hogwarts and it became his home. He believed himself to be an ancestor of Slytherin himself and treated the legacy of this school like it was his own.”

“So the rest of them might be artifacts from the four founding fathers? That would cover all six.”

“It is possible, though I doubt he would have used something of Gryffindor’s. The rivalry between the houses might have kept him from choosing something from that particular founder, though anything is possible.”

“So what could the last one be?”

“That I am not sure of, my boy. I wish I had more to give you, but that is all that I know about the matter.”

“I understand sir. That was very helpful.” He paused, thinking about what to say next. When he realized that there wasn’t anything else he needed to say, he spoke again. “It is getting later, sir.” There wasn’t much more that he could learn from the man and it was actually getting late. He was already past curfew and he was tired. Also Draco and the others would be waiting for him and he didn’t want to cause them to worry since he had been so long with Dumbledore.

“It is. If this is the last time we speak, please know that I have done everything for the greater good.” Dumbledore looked to him with somber eyes.

Harry had no idea how to respond to the words and he simply nodded. It seemed that Dumbledore knew that his time was nearing an end. If his hand was anything to go by he was already dying, it was possible that Snape’s mission would simply hasten the inevitable. Harry did not like the man, but he also had a heart. He knew he would mourn the man’s loss, but the sting would fade. They were at war, one that Dumbledore had become far too comfortable puppeteering, and Harry knew that the old man had long since overstepped his bounds.

“Goodnight, Sir.”

Harry didn’t wait long enough to hear him respond. He was too far from the tower for his liking and it was well past midnight. If his resistance to stay had anything to do with his growing guilt than he didn’t bother to inspect it for too long. The old wizard had made the bed he was now forced to lie in and there wasn’t much that Harry could or should do to change his fate. It was what he had to believe because the alternative meant putting his own life and possibly those of his friend’s on the line to save a mad man. It was bad enough they were all risking their lives to stop another mad man, there was only so much that they could be expected to do.

The halls were dark and the portraits that he passed all gave him poorly hidden looks of distain. They had all seen him out well past curfew in the past five and a half years and he knew they weren’t about to start reprimanding him now. Luckily Peeves was not in the same section of castle if the lack of off pitch singing and cackling was anything to go by. Harry kept his wand in a tight grip, navigating in the dark. He would not risk a _lumos_ charm if he didn’t need to. The Greengrass girl and Nott were taken care of for the moment, but Harry knew that when Dumbledore was gone Snape would be forced to let the two run around again.

A silver panther came slinking around the corner and sat in front of Harry without a sound. It seemed that Draco was going to keep him company even when he couldn’t physically be there. Harry couldn’t help the smile that stretched across his face as his hand ghosted over the apparition. The rest of the journey was much more enjoyable with his silent companion. For once Hogwarts was silent and Harry tried his best to feel grateful for the change. He was very accustomed to believing that silence was a very dangerous thing.

Pansy was the next one to meet him, this time just a corridor away from the tower. “We were worried about you.”

“I had company, there was nothing to fear.” Harry smiled to show that he was alright.

“I told Draco that, but you know how he is.” She spoke, but if she thought she was fooling Harry then she was and idiot. She might be the newest to their close knit group, but she had carved out a spot for herself and made herself comfortable. She had worried just as much as the rest and her waiting outside the safety of their common room was proof.

“Of corse I do.” Harry laughed quietly and held his arm out for the girl to take. They walked the rest of the way together while Draco’s patronus followed closely behind.

There was a fire still going strong in the common room and Harry was not surprised to find Blaise, Ginny, and Draco sitting by it. The rest of the core would no doubt be in their own dorms, but his friends had stayed up for him. It warmed his heart and made the bitter loneliness that had existed in him since his Aunt and Uncle had convinced him that he was good for nothing begin to fade.

“Harry!” Draco leapt from the armchair and into Harry’s open arms. “Thank Merlin you’re back, you’ve been gone for hours I thought that crazy old man had done something to you.”

“I’m fine, love.” Harry laughed as he pulled Draco closer. He took a moment to bury his face in the boy’s hair. “Really I think we need to get out of here for a while if you’re getting this paranoid.”

“Not nice!” Draco gently punched his arm before kissing it better. “Getting out of here does sound good though.”

“Mm. Well this Christmas hols we will be in our new home, that will have to do, but until then I’m sure we could find something to keep us occupied.”

“Alright then, looks like it’s time for bed, no?” Pansy leered, remind the two that they weren’t alone. “Good night you two, we can finish the actual important conversation about what the old man told you in the morning.”

“Well, there’s no reason to waste a good opportunity.” Harry agreed which Draco saw no reason to argue with. They made their goodnights quick so they could run to their room, twin grins stretched across their faces.

Harry made it into their room first, but he was not disappointed as Draco was close behind him. They made quick work of their own clothing, not bothering to slow themselves down with unnecessary touching. They had themselves naked in seconds and Draco was all over him again. Their lips were locked in a searing kiss as Draco moved to wrap his arms and legs around Harry. Taking the hint, Harry hoisted Draco up, hooking his arms under the boy’s thighs and grinding his fully erect cock against Draco’s quivering hole. The filthy moan that left the blonds’ lips reminded Harry that they need to put up a silencing spell. Using his silent, windless magic, Harry warded the door and silenced the room so their dorm mates wouldn’t have something to complain about come morning. He also used their regular spell to lubricate and stretch Draco so he was ready without needing any additional preparation.

“Merlin Harry,” Draco whined when he felt the spell. He did his best to move and widen his legs further and Harry nearly dropped him for his struggles. The Gryffindor chuckled before dropping the boy on the bed so he could have better access of his body without the fear of hurting him.

He started sucking and biting on the boy’s collar, ignoring his cock and bullocks entirely. Draco complained many times that he was being a tease, but they both knew that Harry was the stronger wizard and even if Draco tried to make him go faster, he wouldn’t succeed. After making sure to leave at least marks on Draco’s pale neck, Harry began to give his nipples the same treatment.

“Harry, come on,” Draco begged and Harry only responded by laughing as he left a particularly dark bite mark on Draco’s ribs.

“What, love?”

“You know exactly what!” Draco complained when Harry moved lower, but skipped his crotch entirely in favor of biting and kissing his thighs.

“Oh, do you want me to stop?” Harry tried for innocent, but both boys knew he had failed miserably.

“If you don’t do something soon I swear I- ah!” Draco started his tirade, but was abruptly stopped when Harry’s tongue found his entrance. “Fuck, Harry!”

Harry took his time rimming Draco, loving every gasp and moan that fell from his lips When he was sure that he was extra sensitive, Harry pulled away and lined up his leaking cock with Draco’s hole. The Slytherin had little time to complain as Harry pushed into Draco’s welcoming heat. They had done this enough times and Draco was prepared enough that they didn’t have to start slow and Harry rocked his hips at a bruising rate. Draco clawed at his shoulders and cried out with every thrust.

“ _How does it feel, my love?_ ” Harry hissed and Draco clenched down around him, letting out a particularly loud groan.

“So good, Harry.” Draco said, not knowing that he was responding to Harry’s question. He had heard the ancient snake language enough to recognize the phrase ‘my love’ and it still amazed Harry how easily the hissing drove Draco mad.

“ _Come for my, my love_.” Harry hissed, punctuating his words with a few more hard thrusts. It was enough to cause Draco to find his release and Harry followed moments later.

“Wow.” Draco mumbled when Harry pulled out and collapsed next to him on the bed.

Harry chuckled softy before doing a quick cleaning charm on the both of them. They were both too warm to use the covers and so he felt content leaving themselves onto of the covers. Draco rolled into his side and He wrapped him close.

“I love you,” he whispered into the blond’s hair and he felt as Draco smiled into his side.

“I love you too.”

They fell into a happy silence, just enjoy that the other was there and safe. Harry never wanted to take moments like this for granted and he thanked whatever being was out that there that brought Draco to him. Just as he was about to fall sleep, Draco stirred and Harry opened his eyes to watch his lover.

“I know it’s not the time now, but how did the meeting go?” There was a certain anxiety in his eyes that made Harry pause and consider his next words carefully.

“I learned a lot, but not enough. It will help us in the war, but I’m also afraid things have gotten more complicated.”

“Are we still safe here?” Draco asked the fear that had been eating at Harry for weeks.

“I don’t know. I hope so, but that’s why I want to make sure we have the house built before the winter hols. We need to have a place to go just in case and I want to make sure that we’ve at least got a plan.”

“Should we try to have a small group of us go to the house to work on in during the week too? That might speed things up,” Draco suggested.

“True, but until we get all of the hard spells done with the actual framework, I think it’s safer for everyone to be there, just in case.”

“That’s a good point. I think everyone is done with their class early tomorrow. We can try to have a quick meeting and set up a schedule to have the house complete by. At least that way we have a time frame and also we have an idea of when we need the furniture.”

“Good idea.” Harry smiled and kissed Draco soundly until all other thoughts left the boy’s mind.

“I take it we’re done with the important talk for the night,” Draco laughed and Harry pulled away looking a little dazed.

“Yes we are. I want to spend the rest of my night kissing my amazing boyfriend and then getting some well deserved rest.”

“Well when you say it like that it makes it very hard to argue,” Draco smirked before leaning in for another long kiss.

True to Harry’s request they spent the rest of their night making out lazily until they nodded off to sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know that I left out a huge part of the books by not including the locket. I will say right now that I am not going to be changing any of the known horcruxes in the books, that will remain the same, but the finding of the locket will happen differently. I don't think the Harry of this story would have been so helpless with the infiri and also I'm not sure how hard it would have been for him to force Dumbledore to drink the potion. It also would have meant that Snape would need to kill him at the end of this chapter and that just doesn't fit with what I have planned. That being said, I hope no one is too mad with that major deviation!


	22. Chapter 22

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am SO sorry for the delay! I was on vacation and then things got crappy at work for a bit, but here is a new chapter and it will not take as long for the next one I promise!

Tuesday afternoons were normally very relaxed for Harry and the core. They all had a study period at the same time, minus Ginny and Luna who were a year bellow them, and they often hung out in the common room or out on the grounds depending on the weather. It had been decided that morning that they would have a meeting after dinner so Ginny and Luna could be present, but Harry knew that his friends were all very curious to know what information Dumbledore had given him and their none too subtle glances were putting him on edge.

“Alright you lot, you can all stop watching Harry like a hawk.” Draco drawled almost sounding like the old Malfoy and Harry sighed in relief. “We’ll discuss it tonight.”

Apologies came from throughout the common room and Harry smiled inspire of himself. “It’s alright. I’m not intentionally keeping information form you, I just don’t want to repeat myself is all.”

“We know, Harry. Sorry, we’r just a bit anxious to know more so we can help.” Hermione said earnestly as she sat perched on the armrest of his chair.

“I know ‘Mione. I know you can’t help yourself especially,” Harry teased. He laughed when she swatted at his arm in protest. He took the opportunity to pull her closer in a half hug before kissing her on the cheek. “It wouldn’t be right if you weren’t eager to learn more about anything.”

“While we’re talking about learning things, I heard that you might have figured out a solution to us needing to bring the furniture from Harry’s vaults to the house when it’s built.” Draco commented from his spot on the couch. Ron was sitting with him flipping through a Quidditch magazine and he stopped to listen. Neville and Dean were working on homework at the table while Pansy, Blaise, and Seamus were in the kitchen putting together snacks and drinks for everyone. The room quieted as every stopped to listen to what the girl had created.

“Well it wasn’t specifically for that, but it will be very useful.” Hermione produced a very small beaded bag from her pocket. It didn’t look like very much and everyone stared at it.

“I think you’re going to need to explain, ‘Mione.” Ron prompted and Hermione blushed before clearing her throat.

“You can store anything in this, no matter the size. You don’t have to shrink the items so if it is something that is sensitive to spells it can fit and there is no limit.”

To demonstrate Hermione began to pull all sorts of things from the little pouch. Books of varying sizes, neatly folded clothes, packages of crackers and dried foods, and even an astrology telescope.

“Blimey that’s amazing!” Ron gasped and soon everyone was crowing around her to take a closer look.

“Did you create this?” Pansy asked in shock and everyone looked to her, amazed when she simply nodded.

“I was thinking that if we ever needed to leave in a hurry this could come in handy. Obviously the telescope was just in there to show off, I’m not sure when we’d ever need that.”

“Well if you can fit anything in that, why not keep it? You never know,” Neville commented smartly and the others agreed.

“Maybe we should all have some of our things in there, like a change of clothing, just in case,” Dean suggested.

“That might not be such a bad idea. We’re going to need that in a few days too, I set up with the goblins to have Draco and I go to the vaults to pick out the furniture that we’re taking. I was going to just sort it and then go back when we were done with the house, but if we can manage it all in one run that seems much easier.”

“How much longer do you think it’s going to take the build the house anyway?” Blaise asked as he and Pansy went back toward the kitchen to dole out the cups of tea and sandwiches.

“Well Draco and I were talking last night, I want everyone to be there during the rest of the actual building process, at least when it comes to the frame. If the siding and such seems to be going on easily enough then I think it would be okay if we divided into shifts and one shift found a way to get down there every day to do a little work, that way we can have the whole thing done and decorated by mid December. I want it ready for anyone who might not have a place to stay during the Christmas hols.”

“That sounds feasible enough,” Hermione agreed.

The short discussion seemed to set the rest of Harry’s friends at ease and was enough to distract them from his meeting the night before. He relaxed further into his seat and only moved when Hermione and Draco switched places. The couple sat side beside, both doing their own reading while Draco slid from the arm of the chair into Harry’s lap.

“You good?” Draco whispered with his face buried in Harry’s beck. He placed feather light kisses on the exposed skin and Harry sighed happily, closing his eyes to enjoy the sensation.

“Yeah,” he breathed out so quite that he wasn’t sure that Draco at heard him.

“Want to go for a walk?” Harry wasn’t sure where they would go, it was cold being mid November and the cable would be drafty, but Draco could tell that he need space from the rest of the group, no matter how well meaning they were.

“Sure, lead the way.”

They said their goodbyes to the group before heading out of the common room. Harry loved their friends and while he would always prefer to be with people he loved over being alone, he didn’t often get a chance to be alone with his own thoughts, especially with how close the core had gotten and he was grateful to take advantage of the opportunity. Draco always knew just what he needed and didn’t say a word as he began to lead them from the tower toward the main castle. They weren’t dressed to walk the grounds so Harry knew that wherever Draco was leading them it would be somewhere within Hogwarts.

The halls were empty, most of the students were in classes with an exception to the sixth years. Most of their year would be in the library, exams were close with the holidays so near and Harry was mildly surprised that Hermione hadn’t been orchestrating a very elaborate study plan for the group already. Draco held his hand loosely in his own while he gently guided them through the castle. They passed portraits who bid them good afternoon and even one of the castle ghosts was out, with whom they’d nodded to without stopping. Otherwise they stayed in a pleasant silence. Harry was just going to ask where Draco was taking him when they rounded a corner to a set of stairs that only lead to one section of the castle. Draco took them to the empty wall and walked past it three times. When a small, nondescript door appeared, Harry smiled, allowing his lover to take his hand and lead him in.

The room inside was very much like the common room that they had just left, but it was much smaller in size. There was a single love seat which sat in front of a roaring fire while the rest of the room was dimly lit. There was a set of tea a cakes on the coffee table and a heavy looking blatant draped over the back of the couch. Draco continued to lead him in to the room, pulling on his arm gently until they sat together on with Draco pressed into Harry’s chest.

“Thank you,” Harry murmured into the blond’s hair. He loved his friends, but it spending time apart from them was also a welcomed experience.

“I thought we could use a little bit of that time for ourselves we keep talking about. Just you and me, not talk of the Junior Order or the war or horcuxes and houses.”

“Wow that nearly sounds normal,” Harry teased and Draco lightly punched him in the shoulder, though his smile gave him away.

“Well I think we could all do with a bit of normal in our lives.” Draco looked suddenly serious and Harry decided that such a look just wouldn’t do.

“Very true. Now that you mention it, I know you said no talk of the Junior Order, but I was thinking, since Christmas is coming up, it might be nice to have a party with the DA before we all separate for break.” It had been something he had thought of in passing and had mentioned to Hermione. She had also agreed that it would be fun, but with how busy they had been he’d completely forgotten.

“That is a good idea, I’m sure Pansy would love to help plan it. She does love organizing those sorts of things.”

“Oh good, I think if we can get some of the others in on it, I might get away with not having to do any the planning. Between classes and all of the extra lessons we’ve been teaching I think I’d cry if I had to plan a party on top of it.”

“I was actually thinking,” Draco started before picking up a book from the table that Harry had never seen before, “there might be something else that you can teach and that I could teach too. These are old tales that wizarding families read to their children when they’re young. I bet you’ve never heard them before and I’ve always wondered what muggle children grew up with.”

“Are you saying we could teach each other things about our cultures?” Harry was defiantly interested in what Draco grew up reading and learning. He wasn’t sure that he could offer the same information. He had heard the classic fairytales before, but he couldn’t say that he remembered many of them. He was just as ignorant to what normal muggle children did as he was to what wizarding children did.

“Pretty much. I never took muggle studies, I’m not sure I would have been interested in the past and I know my father wouldn’t have let me, but I think it’s about time I learned. I know that there is a lot about wizarding life that can be hard to learn since they don’t teach it here. I was thinking maybe Ron and Hermione might want to join us, it can just be the four of us. I’m sure we could all bring different knowledge and perspectives to the table.”

“Yeah. That sounds cool. For now, do you want to read me a story?” Harry liked the thought that his two best friends in life and he and the love of his life might share something together, but for now he just wanted to keep Draco to himself.

“Sure, have you ever heard of _The Tale of the Three Brothers_?” Draco smiled in the small, private way that Harry cherished and it warm him to know that it was just for him.

“No, I haven’t.”

“Perfect. It’s one of my favorites.” Draco settled back into Harry’s chest and opened to a spot in the book as if he had memorized it. Harry noticed instantly that there were drawings in the margins and small notes in very delicate hand writing. “This was my mum’s. I think she’d like that I’m sharing it with you.”

“I’m sure she would. In fact I hope to ask her myself when we get her back.” Harry hated that there was nothing he could do to help Draco’s mother. He had never met her and had no feelings toward her, not like he hated Lucius, but she was Draco’s mother and he felt terrible that she was being tortured in her own home while he sat in the warmth the fire with Draco safe in his arms.

“I hope so.” Draco cleared his throat and began to read.

Harry found the story about the three brother’s fascinating, though the description of the invisibility cloak was a unsettlingly like his own.

“I know in muggle culture, these types of stories are just fiction, but is this story based on truth?”

“I don’t know. I’m sure you could find people who thought they were. I’m sure Luna does. Why?”

“I have something to show you.” Harry quickly stood from the couch, pulling Draco up with ease. He could be overreacting, of course, there was a lot he didn’t know about the Wizarding world and while his cloak was undoubtably special, Draco would know for sure just how rare it was. He hadn’t been surprised when Ron had known much about it, the Weasley wouldn’t have reason to know useless information about magical artifacts, but such studies would have been normal for Draco’s upbringing.

The two made their way from the Room of Requirement to their common room at breakneck speeds. Luckily classes still hadn’t let out and they made it back to their portrait with little interruption. Harry hissed the password while Draco was catching his breath and then he all but dragged Draco up to their room.

“Oh hey guys, are you—” Harry vaguely heard Seamus behind them, but he was too focused on his task.

“Uh, we’ll catch up with you later!” Draco called, still not understanding what had Harry so worked up.

“Just please remember your silencing charms this time!” Pansy leered and the rest of their friends dissolved into a fit of giggles.

Before Draco could protest that it had only been one time (or maybe five, but who really counted those things?) Harry had them both in their room with the door firmly shut. He made no move to explain before he threw open is truck with more force than necessary and began to pull out his things creating a mess on the floor.

“Harry would you just tell me what—” Draco started, but his mouth flew open when a shimmering cloak emerged from the trunk and he lost sight of his boyfriend entirely. “Blood hell.”

“You are spending far too much time with Ron.” Harry’s disembodied voice laughed before he came into view again. “So I’m guessing this is not normal magical artifact.”

“No, that’s impossible.” Draco spoke, still in awe as the material came in and out of focus. “Is this how you managed everything these past five years?”

“Mostly yes, I can’t believe I haven’t shown it to you yet,” Harry laughed and extended his hand so Draco could feel it. “I’m sure you’ve figured out by now that those were not phantom snowballs by the Shrieking Shack in our third year.”

“You bloody tosser!” Draco barked out a laugh as he played with the cloak.

“Yes, much too much time with Ron.” Harry commented in an attempted sever tone, but the smile on his face gave him away.

“This is impossible!”

“You’ve said that.”

“Oh stop being a prat. Invisibility cloaks are things of legend. Wizards have tried for centuries to create them, but they’ve never been successful, at least not that I’ve heard of.”

“And you are an expert on these things?” Harry teased and he chuckled at the glare.

“More than you,” Draco bit back while turning his attention back to the cloak.

“Well then if this is the real thing, and as rare as you suggest, then does that make the whole story real?”

“I don’t know.” An uneasy quiet fell between the two. “We should meet up with the others.”

The conversation wasn’t over, but there also wasn’t much more to say. Harry knew that in the end Draco only had marginally more knowledge about these things than him, but he wasn’t sure who else to ask. It would have to be tabled with the list of mysteries that they had no answers for. Admittedly it was not high on that list, but Harry was intrigued by it none the less. They joined their friends still in a spell of silence, if the group noticed no one made comment. The rest of the break went by quickly and the invisibility cloak flew from Harry’s mind as the day continued on as normal.

* * *

The core sat around the fire of the common room uncharacteristically silent. Harry was seated in his customary armchair while Draco flanked on on his right side on the armrest. Pansy, a new, but undoubtably permanent fixture, flanked on on the left. Ginny and Blaise were sharing a single spot on the couch while Luna and Neville took on the rest of the seats. Dean and Seamus sat in the armchair across from Harry while Hermione and Ron took a spot on the floor in front of the couch, in the center of them all. They were waiting for him to start, but respecting his need to collect his thoughts.

“Dumbledore gave me very important information, information that might just win us this war.” Harry passed a moment more before continuing. He told this friends about everything from the horcruxes, what they were, and the theories that the aging wizard had on just how many Voldemort had.

“That sounds impossible.” Hermione was the first to react. Harry noticed that she had said sounds and not that it was. Hermione had come a long way from the girl who could accept magic, but could still not open her mind to the possibilities that magic provided.

“Do you have that papers still?” Pansy asked and Harry nodded while removing them from his bag. He did an easy enough spell that duplicated the pages until there was a stack for each member of the Junior Order and everyone in the room had a copy.

“What does Dumbledore think they are?”

“He thinks that they could be something filled with sentiment. I don’t see him being sentimental, personally, but I do understand where he would get the idea.”

“To think that I was in contact with one for so long,” Ginny whispered and Blaise held her tighter. Ron reached up from his position on the floor to clasp at his sister’s hand. They never spoke about Ginny’s encounter with Tom Riddle in her first year. It had been a subject, like many others, that they had skated over in the years that had passed since they’d begun their school career.

“We’re all going to have to help out researching this to figure it out, do you think Dumbledore will give you any more information?” Hermione asked as she finished scanning the last page.

“It’s worth a shot,” Luna agreed.

“Well it looks like we’ve got our work cut out for us.” Dean muttered.

“Speaking of work, Draco and I were discussing a plan to complete the house in time for the winter hols.”

The rest of the night was spent completing the plans and creating shifts for when the house had come far enough that it was safe for them to do so. It was late when they were through and it was agreed upon that another DA meeting would need to take place soon. With Dumbledore leaving soon the safety of Hogwarts was coming into question and Harry wanted to make sure that everyone he cared for was looked after.


	23. Chapter 23

The week passed slowly for Harry and he knew why. It was the last week that Dumbledore would remain in residence at Hogwarts before being brought before the Wizengoamot. He knew that the wizard would call on him at least once more, their last meeting not providing him with nearly enough information. He found that he dread the summons for more reasons that he originally suspected. In the time since he had learned that the old wizard would be removed from the school he had struggled with a range of emotions. He mourned the loss of the kind man who had shown him comfort and love, but he loathed the same manipulative man who had housed him with his abusive relatives without explanation. It was hard to marry the two vastly different personalities in Dumbledore and thus Harry was left feeling mostly numb toward the entire ordeal.

His friends, including Draco, had all been good by giving him space. They could not possibly understand the conflicting feelings that plagued him and kept him from sleeping at night and no one dared try. They had all learned that he would come to them when he was ready and he was sure that it was Draco’s quiet support that kept even Ron and Hermione from hounding him for more information.

In the days that passed since his meeting with Dumbledore the core worked on what information they would provide to the rest of the Junior order and to the DA at large. They didn’t intend on lying to anyone, but it was obvious that the horcruxes were extremely sensitive information and the fewer who knew of it the better. Luna often sat out during these conversations, being too much a free spirit to hammer down strategies and hard lines when her friends were evolved and she spent the time with Harry instead, the pair setting up camp in front of the fire in joined silence as the arguments raged on behind them. Harry wasn’t ready to put his own ideas on the table as of yet, especially when he wasn’t sure just what it was he was feeling.

He still wasn’t sure what emotions to feel when he stood in his last class on Friday. Potions had gotten much easier for him, but with a distracted mind it was even easier to fall back on bad habits. Normally he would partner with Draco, but Ron and Hermione had gotten into a minor argument that morning which had carried on through the day and now Ron stood beside him instead. Harry was listlessly adding in the ingredients while Ron complained about one thing or another and very soon the potion went to shit as these things tended to do. The potion began to bubble and turn a putrid shade of green. Luckily Ron had learned a thing or two about potions this year too and he had the lid on the potion within a split second and he had his wand out to banish the concoction before it exploded and did unfathomable harm to them.

“Honestly Potter, Weasley I didn’t think it was possible to mess up this potion. How good of you to prove me wrong.” They kept up pretenses in the halls still and Snape’s cutting remarks sparked Harry enough to pull him from his funk.

“You’re welcome, Professor,” he snarked back, his eyes meeting the man in a clear challenge.

“Detention, Potter, and a word after class.” The rest of the room fell into an uneasy silence. Those who believed that Snape was still a greasy bat that he worked so hard to portray himself to be looked toward Harry with sympathetic eyes. Those who knew better looked on the boy just as worried, but for their own reasons.

Class passed quickly after the small interruption and Harry waved goodbye to his friends as they filed out of class. He noticed that Ron and Hermione were speaking again, it seemed the boy’s quick thinking in class had earned him a spot back in his girlfriend’s good graces. Draco was the last to go, looking between Severus and Harry once before heading out and closing the door.

“The former headmaster requests your presence tonight. I’m sure you’d consider that adequate detention,” Severus drawled, but the concern in his eyes told Harry that it was Severus before him and not Professor Snape.

“Could I clean cauldrons instead?” Harry pouted, only half joking.

“I will tell him to expect you after dinner. That will be all, Potter.” The smirk was evident this time and Harry felt his irritation slowly ebb away. Severus must know the feelings that had been brewing in him all week and unlike his friends was forcing him to see it head on. He loved that everyone had known to give him space, but it was also nice to be given a push especially when he needed it.

“Alright, but just know I won’t offer to clean cauldrons again.”

“I’m sure there will be other students finding themselves in detention sooner or later.” Severus shrugged and motioned toward the door making it clear that their conversation was done.

Harry let himself from the room with ease, making sure to school his face to look as miserable as possible should anyone see him in the halls and question why he left a private meeting with Snape with a smile on his face. He was not surprised to find Pansy and Draco waiting for him just down the hall.

“I suppose he did not go easy on you.” Pansy questioned and Harry sighed for dramatic flare.

“Let’s just say I actually offered to clean cauldrons for my detention.”

“That bad?” This time it was Draco who shot him a look and Harry rolled his eyes to hide his smile.

“I will be spending the evening in the company of our esteemed former headmaster.”

“Well then, I could see how cauldrons would be preferable.” Draco agreed.

Pansy looked between the two, not quite understanding, but choosing to keep quiet. The group had filled her in on a lot since she had joined them, but she hadn’t actually been witness to any of the incidents with the old wizard and she found it hard to believe the once strong and commanding Headmaster had really fallen so far, but she knew better than to question their information. They had yet to give her a reason to doubt them and she watched the pair as they seemed to hold a silent conversation.

“I’d prefer to go with you, or at least have one of us join you.” Draco finally said out loud and Harry shook his head.

“No, he won’t like the extra company. I will be okay and I have my patronus, I will call on you guys if I need to, but I’m sure it won’t come to that. Plus any information he might give us would be very helpful.”

“Okay,” Draco agreed. “But I don’t have to like it.”

* * *

 

Harry hadn’t eaten much at dinner, too worried about his meeting, and his stomach grumbled when he saw the spread of food waiting for him in Dumbledore’s personal quarters. It was empty, just as it had been before and the seemingly familiar ground in an unfamiliar situation put the boy mildly at ease. He settled down in the plush cushions and made a quick plate, devouring the turkey and mash as he shoveled peas and carrots into his mouth. He hadn’t eaten much all week, if he was honest, and the nerves had finally caught up with him.

“You’re going to want to save your strength for tonight. I thought it best to have dinner brought up to us just in case you hadn’t eaten.” Dumbledore spoke in his normal serene tone which instantly put Harry’s hackles up.

“Why will I need to keep my strength up?” He put his place down and swallowed the last bite still in his mouth. Draco and Hermione would have been horrified at his manners.

“We will have to go tonight. There is no time to waste.” The old wizard sat before him, not bothering to touch the food which was easily too much for just Harry. He might have been curious about this if he wasn’t confused by the old man’s statement.

“We’re going somewhere? Where.” This was the first that Harry had heard about them taking a trip and he mentally reviewed the conversations he’d had with the headmaster to make sure he hadn’t forgotten something.

“To a place that was once very important to young Tom Riddle. Do you remember what a pensive is Harry?”

Dumbledore was being cryptic as always and it was infuriating. “Of course, they allow you to review your own memories or to see others, why?”

“To truly understand what must be done, there are things that I must show you.”

Harry nodded grudgingly before following the old man to his pensive, the food forgotten. It was different than the large ornate one in the Headmaster’s quarters and sat unobtrusive in a poorly lit corner of the room. Harry waited impatiently as the old man withdrew glass phials from a rack before returning with a small handful.

“We will begin in the most appropriate place. My first interaction with young Tom Riddle.”

Harry felt his stomach begin to knot. They were only memories and no harm could come to him in them, but he still felt dread mount in the pit of his stomach as he moved impossibly close to the pensive without actually entering the memory. With one more mental shove, Harry forced himself into the silver liquid, feeling as Dumbledore entered as a solid presence beside him.

They took time to view many memories that chronicled Riddle’s life through Dumbledore’s eyes. Harry never felt pity for the lonely boy at the orphanage. Would his life been similar had his aunt and uncle not been forced to take him in? He pushed the dark thoughts aside as he continued to learn more about his enemy than he could have ever hoped to learn before. When they were done, Harry felt sadness for how Hagrid had been treated and was not surprised that what ever small amount of pity he had felt for the man was long gone.

“I believe he has hidden a horcrux in the cave which he hurt those children from the orphanage in.”

“Would that really be wise? It seems easy to stumble upon.”

“You forget that he is a powerful wizard, Harry. He would have gone back and worked all kinds of magic to cloak it from those who did not know it was there.”

“But naturally you know where it is.” Harry did his best to hide his sarcasm, but he was sure he had failed.

“Naturally.”

“Then we should go. There is no sense in wasting more time. Is there anything you think I might need?”

“No,” Dumbledore paused long enough to make Harry worry before continuing. “I’m not sure what defenses might be in the cave. I will be filled with dark magic. I want you to understand this before you agree to go.”

“Are you asking me to go? When have you ever asked me something before? You have always expected that I follow your word and have I not done as I’ve been told?”

“Things were different then.”

“Indeed. But yes I am sure. Where will we leave from?” Harry knew that getting angry would be pointless and he took the ugly feeling and pushed it deep within himself, past his mental shields and out of his mind. He would have time to be angry later, but now he had a job to do.

“We will leave from the Astronomy Tower.” He gave no explanation and the reason was hardly important to Harry simply nodded and stood, following the old man without protest.

The journey through the castle was silent and efficient. They took the quickest root that conveniently had no people due to the late hour. Harry wondered if he would have time to send a patronus to Draco, but he thought better of it. Dumbledore was being more forthcoming than he had in the past and even still Harry had no idea what he was walking in to. Any distractions or delays at this time would most likely hinder them and Harry couldn’t risk that. Draco would understand.

They made it to the top of the tower before long and Dumbledore stopped to face him. “You will need to trust me for this Harry. I know that might be hard given the past few months, but we will not return alive if you do not trust me.”

“If you expect me to trust you, you should trust me as well. What are we possibly facing at the cave? What do you think we are going to find there?”

“The answer is I don’t know. I imagine that there are dark and dangerous defenses in that cave and I dare not guess for I am sure I will be wrong. As for what we will find, I am also not sure. I believe that he would have hidden a horcrux there, but I am not sure what that item might be. It would be something priceless and important in either his own or possibly Hogwarts’ history as he did treat this castle as his home.”

Harry took a moment to simply stare at Dumbledore. From what he could tell he was telling the truth and there was little reason left to stall. “Alright I’ll go with you, but let me just send a patronus to Draco first. If I don’t come back to the rooms soon they’ll worry.”

“You cannot tell them where we are going. We cannot risk others trying to help and jeopardizing the journey.”

“I would have to know the coordinates in order for that to be a problem,” Harry stated without any heat. There was no sense in fighting, but it also needed to be stated that he couldn’t pass along that information even if he wanted to. He didn’t want Draco or any of his friends trying to come after him and Hermione would find a way to track him down if she put her mind to it. “ _Expecto Patronum_ Draco I am okay. I will not be back until late don’t wait up.”

“Are you ready?” Harry didn’t speak, but instead held out his hand to take the man’s arm. They disapparated with a crack and found themselves on a rocky ledge, the cold winter winds slammed into them from all sides.

Water welled in Harry’s eyes as he squinted against the assault of mother nature. He did his best to turn his head to block out the wind just in time to see Dumbledore cut his own hand, smearing the blood over the rocks in what seemed to be a nondescript motion. The rocks began to part like the bricks at Diagon Alley and Harry gratefully ran into the opening to escape the vicious wind. He took little notice of the cavern around him as he turned to watch Dumbledore walk in at a much slower rate. There was very little light as the stones settled back into place and before long they were plunged into darkness.

“ _Lumos_.” Harry spoke clearly and yet nothing happened. “ _Lumos_ ,” he tried again and this time he realized that he couldn’t hear himself speak. There was no noise in the pitch black cavern.

 _Lumos._ He tried to cast the spell again silently, hoping that whatever was causing the unnatural silence would not stop wordless spells, but there was still no light at the tip of his wand. Without being able to hear or see, Harry had no idea what might be coming his way. Fear began to set in for the first time since they let the castle and Harry gripped his wand tight, prepared for the worst.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay I swear that the next chapter will have action in it! I was going to put it in this chapter, but I realized that I didn't put the proper build up first. The next chapter is going to be great I promise!


	24. Chapter 24

The first thing Harry knew he had to do was get his racing heart under control. He did his best to breathe in and out and focus on his surroundings. He thought of Draco’s laugh, Hermione’s smile, the way Ron looked after a particularly fulfilling meal. He thought of Luna’s gentle nature and Ginny’s burning intensity when he friends were in need. When he was certain that the ringing in his ears was gone he forced himself to focus on his surrounds. His sight and hearing were gone for the time being and he had to rely on his other sense and instincts. The cave smelt damp, he could tell through the stale air that it had been a long time since someone had visited this spot. He felt around with his wand and found a cave wall. The rocks were jagged and he was careful not to cut himself as he felt for the opening toward the corridor he had gotten a quick glance of before he had been plunged into nothingness.

Dumbledore was right behind him. He might to hear or see him, but he can feel the old man’s magic like a flame at his back. He was old and his mental wellbeing was rightfully being called into question, but there was no doubt that Dumbledore was one of the most powerful wizards still alive. The horcrux had sapped his strength and his health, but it had not stolen his magic. He was a constant presence at his back, though that did little to comfort the boy. He was moving into unfamiliar territory with a man he was not sure he could trust literally at his back.

Harry toed along the wall carefully, grazing his hand over jagged rocks and using his wand much the way he believed a blind man would use his walking stick. He imagined that if he wasn’t careful the rocks would damage his wand, but he had more important things to worry about. He could do enough spells without his wand to make it through the night and replacing his wand wasn’t impossible, but he drew it back a fraction of an inch in the hopes that he didn’t do any permanent damage to it. He took another deliberate step forward, not realizing there was a rock in front of him until he was tumbling to the floor. Forgetting that the walls were made of sharp rocks, Harry reached out to catch his fall cutting his hand in the process. He imagined that he let out a hiss of pain, but he still couldn’t hear, though he felt as blood poured from his hand and smeared against the wall.

Suddenly light and sound exploded into the cave and Harry instinctively covered his eyes, making the mistake of rubbing his own blood over his glasses.

“Well done Harry,” Dumbledore said serenely. He sounded quite pleased.

“Excuse me?” Harry hissed before quickly healing his hand and cleaning his glasses with a few wordless spells.

“The cave requires those who enter to provide a sacrifice that might weaken them and make them more vulnerable. I paid with my blood to gain us entrance, but it took your blood to bring back our senses.” Dumbledore spoke as if he had just been praising Harry on answering a simple question. How he could act this way while putting Harry and himself in a very real, very dangerous situation was beyond the young wizard. The tight hold that he had on his anger was beginning to slid and Harry began to doubt if he would be able to survive the night without killing off the old man himself.

“Don’t you think that would have been something useful to share?” Harry did his best to remain outwardly calm, but he knew that the old man would see right through him. He would know just how mad he was making him, but Harry couldn’t help it. Dumbledore was once again withholding information and it was going to get them both killed. He had remarkable control over his magic and his emotions, but he was only sixteen and everyone had a breaking point.

“I can’t tell you everything Harry, soon there will come a time that you will not have me to rely on.” Dumbledore had the nerve to level Harry with a reproachful look as if he had been the one to do something wrong. “You cannot expect that everyone around you give you all of the answers when you are capable of discovering them on your own.”

Harry bit back any comments that surfaced in his mind. He didn’t even rely on Dumbledore now, and this was clearly why. “Well then, what can I expect next or will I have to discover this on my own too?”

“From here, I’m afraid that I also do not know what to expect.” The old wizard looked far too pleased with himself for Harry’s liking and he ground his teeth until his jaw hurt, attempting to keep himself from making the situation any more volatile.

“Typical,” Harry whispered, no longer able to keep his comments to himself.

“I’m sorry?” They both knew that the old man had heard him, but Harry refused to rise to the bait.

“Come on, we have no idea how long this will last and I for one would like to keep the bleeding to a minimum.”

There was a passageway before them that he was not entirely sure had been there before, but as it was the only way to go, Harry saw no reason not to pass through it. Dumbledore moved to his side and they walked through it together. Almost predictably the doorway shut as soon as they had found themselves fully in a second room. It looked much like the last room in that it was small, surrounded by jagged rocks and drafty. Unlike the last room it was not entirely empty and there stood a large wooden crate before them with no design or particularly distinct features. The box sat perfectly still and otherwise completely unobtrusive. Harry was instantly suspicious of it.

“Careful now, Harry. Anything could be in there,” Dumbledore spoke as he raised his wand.

“Oh, now you’re suggesting caution?” Harry snarked back, though he followed his former mentor and fell into a defensive stance.

“Now is not the time.” There was a stern quality to his voice which just begged for Harry to talk back.

“It never is.”

All other barbs were lost when the crate slide open on its own. The heavy wood top separated from the rest of the crate and toppled to the floor with a loud thump. Thin fingers grasped at the edge of the box as they turned white at the effort to pull its own weight. The messy blond hair of the figure was the next thing to emerge before cold steel eyes could be seen glaring from an equally pale face. His eyes seemed to be sunken into the skeletal figure and cuts littered its face. Harry new the instant that he saw the figure’s face what they were facing. Thy bogart wearing Draco’s bloodied face continued to pull itself from the crate. The sneer it wore was so reminiscent of something he had seen own his lover’s face before that Harry had to remind himself that Draco was in fact safe at the castle.

The fake Draco pulled itself fully from the crate, lifting each leg over with difficulty. He wore torn Slytherin robes, though he was missing a tie and the customary sweater was ripped enough that the dirty white button up shirt was fully exposed. Instead of appearing weak, the effort the bogart put into pulling itself from it’s box made it seem creepy and set Harry’s nerves on edge. It took a moment to look the boy who lived up and down once before it began to speak. “You left me Harry. You let the Dark Lord hurt me and you LEFT ME.”

Logically Harry knew that this was not Draco. He had no reason to fear this thing, but it still gave him pause. He would never intentionally leave Draco, but he did fear what would happen if he could not protect him. He knew that the boy was strong and between all of their friends he was more than safe, but Harry also knew that wars were cruel and that sometimes there was nothing that could be done. Since he had come to realize just how much Draco meant to him, Harry had feared what might happen to the boy if Voldemort ha gotten to him now. He had hesitated too long and the thing wearing his boyfriend’s face was advancing on him. He moved to raise his wand and cast the counter spell, but Dumbledore was between him and the creature before he could react.

The figure before them turned into another man. This one was also blond, but his hair was curly and he had a wild nature about him that Draco never had. He was tall and well muscled and appeared to be in his early fifties. Harry could not see Dumbledore’s face as the man was deliberately situated between him and the bogart, but he knew that whomever this was they were here for the old man and not him.

“Gellert.” There was a break in Dumbledore’s voice that held more emotion then Harry knew how to put into words. It surprised the boy and he suddenly felt the near to see this situation play out before stepping in, if that was even going to be necessary.

“We could have been great together. Imagine the life we could have had if you had just joined me.”

The man moved with a grace that Harry had only seen in Voldemort. He had an air about him that was also similar to the current Dark Lord. It didn’t take much to gather that this was Gellert Grindelwald standing before him. He had come across the man in his research about the Deathly Hallows. He had been fascinated with the story since Draco had told him about it and he knew that there was a history between the once Dark Lord and his headmaster, though he had never guessed that they had been more than just good friends.

“You had to be stopped. You were going down a dark path and you could not listen to reason,” Dumbledore reasoned, though each word sounded like a struggle. Harry felt suddenly as if he was watching a very private moment even though this was no more than a dark, magical creatures. Gellert was locked away in a prison of his own design and he was no more here than Draco had been.

“If we had joined forces we could have kept Tom at bay, we could have insured the world took the turn we wanted. We could have remained together.” Gellert had moved closer, so close that he was able to cup Dumbledore’s face. “My dear we could have had it all and instead you threw me in prison and condemned me for taking your ideas and bringing them to life.”

“I was wrong.” Gellert moved his thumbs to wipe away the tears falling from Dumbledore’s eyes. Harry moved as silently as he could, doing his best not to me noticed by the bogart. He needed to put an end to this. He was beginning to empathize with the old wizard before him and he could allow himself to do that. Even if it was selfish, Harry knew that if he could relate to the man and understand him in any way he might find it in himself to forgive him and he just wasn’t ready to do that yet.

“No, my dear, you were so right. Look at what you have become. We could have had it all and now you have nothing,” Dumbledore was openly crying now and the two sank to their knees as the bogart Gellert began to smirk in such a sinister way that Harry knew that there was no time left.

“Hey!” Harry called out to get both men’s attention. He needed the bogart to turn back into his own fear to cast the spell to dispel it. He had been shocked at seeing Draco’s hurt face which had kept him from instantly ridding themselves of the annoying obstacle, but he was ready now.

The bogart turned to face Harry and forgot the old wizard as it seamlessly turned into Draco once more. It moved closer to Harry, his eyes just as cold as they had been before. “You will never be enough. You are a freak, just like your relatives thought. You won’t defeat the Dark Lord and you will never keep my heart.”

“Oh shut up,” Harry rolled his eyes, thoroughly fed up with the annoying creature. “ _Riddikulus_.”

The figure before them turned from a battered and beaten Draco to a fully healed blond. His previously torn Slytherin robes were now clean and repaired, though now they were Hufflepuff robes.

“Hufflepuff?” Dumbledore asked confused and Harry snorted in response, turning to face the miserable creature to give the man some privacy as he wiped the lingering tears from his eyes.

“What? I always thought it would be funny,” Harry shrugged as the bogart was forced back into the the crate. It had been done with a magic that seemed to originate from the room itself and before Harry could try to understand how that was possible a door behind it appeared. “Come on, I’m sure the other rooms will be worse.”

Harry allowed the old wizard a moment before he made his way through the door. It wouldn’t do to leave the man behind, but he also needed a moment to collect himself and Harry could allow him that much. He could not fathom what it must have been like for him to face off the love of his life and to not only capture him, but also know that he was rotting in a prison. Harry didn’t want to think what he might do if that had been him and Draco.

They walked silently through another short passageway that was just same as the last had been. As Harry had expected, as soon as they had walked fully into the next small room the door behind them closed, though this time there was nothing in the room at all. It looked just like the last two as far as it’s size. It was just as dimly lit and the walls were made of the small deadly looking rocks. Harry was starting to think that this trip would make him claustrophobic, but before he focus to much on it, he was distracted by the old wizard.

“There is strong dark magic in this room,” Dumbledore spoke, his voice no longer betraying the strong emotions that Harry had witnessed the man express just moments before. He was closed off once more and the boy found this man much easier to deal with because he was much easier to hate without having to do any introspection.

Harry nodded and closed his eyes. He could feel the magic even though he couldn’t see anything worth mentioning. Of course the entire cave structure hummed with dark magic, but there was a higher concentration of it in this room, more so than in the first room and certainly more so than the weak amount of magic it had taken to house the bogart. It seemed that the strongest point of the magical signature was manifesting in the center of the room stretching from one unremarkable wall to the opposite one.

“There is a barrier there.” Harry pointed to the empty air with his wand. He dare not cast any spells or touch the invisible barrier until they had a better understanding of what its purpose was.

Dumbledore had drawn his own wand, a thoughtful look on his face. He cast a mild stinging hex at the wall and flinched with it seemed to rebound off of nothing and hit him. “I dare not try something stronger.”

“Well there must be a way to break it down without hurting ourselves. We could try to shield ourselves and then cast the spells,” Harry thought out loud, though he knew it wasn’t the best idea. It was better than standing around waiting for something to happen.

“I shouldn’t be that easy, but we should try.” Dumbledore cast a strong shield spell. “I will open a small hole in the spell so you can try a simple curse and then I will close the gap.”

Harry nodded his understanding, waiting until he saw the small opening to fire off his own mild stinging curse. They watched as the curse hit the wall and then bounced back at their shield. Instead of the shield absorbing the hit like it normally would it bounced back against the wall, this time looking brighter and stronger. This repeated a few times, the bright light of the spell ricocheting until it was soaring back at them so bright that Harry knew his simple stinging curse was going to shatter the shield. He braced himself for the impact and was not surprised when the shield in front of him shattered and he was hit with a full forced stinging curse. He was thrown back a foot due to the impact and he was lucky that he did not hit the rocks behind him at the same speed or he would have been cut up pretty terribly.

“Okay, no more shields.” Harry gasped for breath as he leaned against the back wall. Dumbledore stood beside him also doing his best to reagin some composure. “How are we going to get pas this thing?”

“It may be possible to turn the barrier’s own tricks against it. If we cast a strong enough curse to break it and continue to charge a shield to keep ourselves from getting hurt then it should shatter the barrier like it did to our shield.”

“Are you insane? If that doesn’t work then we’ll both be dead.” Harry stared at the wizard as if he had never truly seen him before, though Dumbledore seemed hardly bothered by the look.

“I know you have more magic than you are letting on. If you stop pretending for once and use all of the magic I know you have at your disposal we will have enough strength between the two of us to break this barrier spell.”

“But how do you know that we can achieve that? I might be powerful enough and you might be too, but to combine our magic like that is dangerous, especially where we have never attempted something like this before.”

“Do you see any other options? We are stuck in this room with now way out. I can feel the anti-apparition charms in these walls and I know you can feel them too. Would you like to die trying to get out of this place or would you like to take the long way to death’s door?”

He had a point. Harry could not stay stuck with the old wizard for longer than necessary. It was an incredibly stupid idea, but it was better than doing nothing. “Okay, who should start?”

“That’s much better, my boy. I think I should start.” Dumbledore straightened himself until he was standing in front of the barrier again. “Set up the shield and leave me enough space to start the curse.”

Harry stood next to the man and did as he was instructed. With a simple waive of his want, Harry had a strong shield completely surrounding them. He wasn’t going to pour all of his magic into it just yet, and he concentrated on opening a small gap for Dumbledore to cast the curse.

“ _Avada Kedavra_.” Harry nearly lost his hold on the shield and was only just able to close the gap in time. The sparking green spell bounced off of their shield and Harry poured more of his magic into it to insure that it didn’t shatter. Dumbledore watched as the light began to soar back at them before he poured his own magic to the shield and Harry was nearly blinded with the sheer amount of magic lighting up the room.

“Hang on, my boy,” were the last words that Harry heard before an explosion rocketed through the small space making all sounds and sights disappear. The last thing the boy who lived felt was the impact of his body against the back wall before his entire world went black.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am so sorry for the long wait! This chapter has been giving me so much trouble and I ended up breaking it up just to get an update out. I should have the second half done faster as I finally have an idea of where this little quest is ending up. That being said, I am not sorry for the cliffhanger!


	25. Chapter 25

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Harry has a surprising encounter and he and Dumbledore make it further into the magical cave.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am so sorry this took so long! I had a self-made deadline of finishing the second draft of my (original) novel by June of this year, which I completed, but also meant all other work fell by the wayside. I am going to try to map out and complete this story without any more long breaks, but no promises.

Harry was numb. He could accept being numb, it was better than the pain he had been expecting. His eyes were closed, at least he believed they were. He was surrounded in darkness and his eyes felt heavy so it seemed a safe assumption; that, or he had lost his ability to see. He wasn’t sure, but he also wasn’t trying too hard to find out. He lay there for what felt like a lifetime before he dared to move. The thought of pushing his aching body was daunting and so he chose so start small. First he tried to move his fingers, something small enough to tell him if he still had control of his body, but not too straining. The focused all of his attention and energy to his fingers, not sure if he was actually moving them. The trouble was that he was numb all over. So much so that he wasn’t sure if he even had fingers left to move.

Giving up on moving for now, Harry switched his focus to his working senses. There were no sounds around Harry. He wasn’t sure if it was because he couldn’t hear, but he was sure that the oppressive feeling of nothingness that existed beyond the awful numbness truly existed. Giving up on using his ears, Harry did his best to remain calm. There was no sense in panicking, he wouldn’t get him out of whatever terrible situation Dumbledore had landed him. He refused to accept that this was the end for him. He couldn’t be dead, he had to believe that there was more beyond life than this. Whatever this was, there was just nothing and it terrified him.

Harry lied their for what felt like hours, wallowing in self-pity before the first sound erupted from his left, hurting his eardrums and shocking him well and good enough that he found himself moving to curl up into a protective ball before he realized that he could move again. The pain from moving so suddenly set in just as suddenly as the sound had come and Harry was crying out, regretting making such a loud noise instantly.

“Sh, it’s okay, Harry,” an eerily familiar voice soothed and gentle hands ran up and and down Harry’s back. “Everything is okay, nothing can hurt you here.”

Harry knew that voice. It didn’t matter that he hadn’t heard it his whole life. It didn’t matter that he had less than two years to know the man behind it. He would know that voice just as well as he knew his own for the rest of his life. “Sirius?”

“That’s right, I’m here, Harry.”

The pain and numb feeling was gone and Harry slowly untucked his body to fully turn and face his godfather. The man looked good, better than Harry ever remembered seeing him. The age lines were gone and his hair was healthy and tamed in a long. He didn’t look as skinny and there was a glow to his skin that Harry knew he had certainly never seen on the man. “Am I dead?”

“No.” Sirius was smiling and the warmth fully reached his eyes. It nearly made Harry cry to see his godfather so at peace.

“So you’re not really here?” Harry sat fully and Sirius moved to pull him into a tight embrace. Tears that Harry hadn’t even realized were threatening to spill steadily made their decent and splashed over their intertwined limbs.

“I am, you are the one a little lost, pup.”

“What does that mean? I don’t understand.”

“You are here, with me, but you are also back in that cave with Dumbledore. Think of it as a bit of out of body experience.”

“Do I have to go back? I don’t want to leave you.” He knew it was childish, but Harry really didn’t want to have to return to the uncertainty of life if it meant that he could stay with Sirius. If the man was in this place, his parents should be too and he so desperately wanted to meet them.

“You and I both know you can’t stay. There are too many people who love you and are counting on you. You couldn’t possibly leave Draco, could you? I know he loves you dearly Harry and his feelings are genuine. I know you couldn’t leave him.”

“You’re not upset about that?” Harry wouldn’t have let himself admit it, but had always been worried that had Sirius lived, he would have disproved of Draco and their relationship.

“I was at first, but your mother made me see reason. That and I saw how good you are for each other. That and his patronus is a pretty telling thing, wouldn’t you think?”

Harry wasn’t sure what to focus on from his statement first, but he couldn’t pass up the opportunity to ask about his parents, as it was he wasn’t sure he was ready to truly accept what it meant that Draco’s patronus matched his own. He could read and understand the textbook definition, but knowing what it meant for them when their relationship was still so new and they were so young was daunting. “Are my parents here?”

“No, but they have been watching after you and they are so proud of who you have become. They want to see you too, but not until it’s your time and this is certainly not it.”

“I don’t know what I am supposed to do when I get back though, what if the barrier isn’t broken?”

“Not all things can be destroyed, but sometimes you can alter things just enough with your magic that you can slip through their defenses, you should still have enough magic when you wake up to make it work.”

“How come Dumbledore didn’t suggest that?” The anger that was so ingrained in him when he thought of the old wizard returned and he wondered if the man purposely lead them astray, though he admittedly couldn’t puzzle out why he would do that. There would have been on benefit to him to jeopardize this mission. If he had truly wanted Harry dead there would have been many easier ways to accomplish it.

Sirius sighed, looking sad before replying. “He is old, and I believe the pressures of the war and of the many things he has survived has caused him to forgot that not every problem needs to be handled by meeting it head-on with force. He was once a good man, Harry. It is easy to forget in these moments, especially in the light of what has happened to you and your friends, but he was once a good man, not just a great one.”

Harry let the words sink into his bones, settling into his mind until they very nearly became a part of him. “Can you be both? Can you be good and great?”

Sirius smiled then, blindingly, and Harry had his answer before he even responded. “You can Harry, you most certainly can. Now I think it’s about time you wake up in your real body, don’t you think?”

He wasn’t sure if he agreed, but Harry knew that he couldn’t linger forever. “I miss you.”

“I miss you too, Harry, but remember what I told you when we first met. I am always with you, in here.” As soon Sirius’ hand touched his chest, Harry was suddenly thrown from the the dream like state, slamming forcefully back into his own body. He woke with a gasp, reaching out for his godfather who wasn’t there.

The cave was silent except for his heavy breathing. Dumbledore moved from his side to stand in front of him, blocking his line of vision to the rest of his surroundings. “Harry, my boy.”

There was no apology, no admittance of any wrongdoing; Harry wasn’t surprised, though how little it bothered him was a bit of a shock. “Is the barrier or whatever it is still up?”

“I’m afraid it is, it seems stronger even, I was burned upon touching it. The already blackened hand looked the same, but the old wizard’s other hand looked just as frail and Harry wondered if the dark magic he had used had reinforced the barrier instead of harming it.

Dumbledore didn’t bother to hold out a hand for him to take and Harry was glad. The pain he had expected hadn’t been there when he woke and he wondered if his strange encounter with Sirius had been the cause. He hardly found it mattered and he began to walk gingerly toward the middle of the room. He wasn’t hurt, but he was certainly weary and he could feel the older wizard’s eyes on his back as he slowly raised his hand to reach toward the pulsing dark energy that radiated from the invisible barrier.

The energy was dark, darker than anything he had ever felt and he had faced Voldemort head-on. Dumbledore had already proven that hate could not destroy hate. He wouldn’t have thought about it in such a way, but his conversation with Sirius had made something very clear, love would always conquer over evil.

Harry took a step back, blocking out his surroundings and began to think about his happiest memories. He knew that he would need to think of more than one to achieve the outcome he was aiming for. He thought of how it felt to sit amongst the Weasleys and truly feel like a member of a family. Memories of him, Ron, and Hermione laughing as they shared sweets while sitting by the lake at the end of every school year. He thought of the moment that he had thought that he would move in with Sirius and never have to go back to the Dursleys. He thought of Draco, everything about him, even their past and how overcoming that made him so happy with their present and their future. There were so many memories to choose from and not much time, so Harry did his best to put all of the love he had ever felt into the spell.

“ _Expecto patronum_.” The light from his wand was so bright that Harry ha to cover his eyes with one hand while he he made sure to hold his hand steady to direct the spell at the barrier. He used all of the dreams he’d had of his parents and what type of life he might have had, the love he would have felt, to give more power to the spell. The light seemed to last a lifetime and Harry only hoped that he might have felt enough love in his life that this would work.

“Harry, I think that’s enough,” Dumbledore’s soft voice brought him from his thoughts and Harry saw his panther patronus standing on the other side of the room, the barrier dissolved. “You will want to save your strength for the rest of the trials we are sure to face.”

Harry simply nodded, not able to speak. He felt raw, his emotions were open and it made him more tired than the drain on his magic made him. Dumbledore was the first to cross the invisible line, making it quite obvious that the barrier was gone. Harry followed after him, not surprised to feel a little resistance as he pushed through to the other side of the wall. Even though he had put everything he had into his spell, the killing curse that Dumbledore had thrown had been powerful and had undoubtably given strength to the barrier.

They passed through another hallway into a similar cavern, Harry was starting to wonder if they were just walking in circles and predictably as soon as they both filed into the room, the doorway closed. This time the room had two wooden chests waiting for them. They were plain, but certainly of a nicer craftsmanship than the crate that the bogart had crawled from. The wood was dark and exuded dark magic, as everything seemed to in the caves.

An apparition appeared in the center of the room of a young Tom Riddle Jr. It was certainly created when he was still in school as he was in his Slytherin robes and he still had a boyish look to his face.

“I am impressed that you have made it this far, but I assure there is still many more tasks to go before you find what you seek. This such task it not for the faint of heart. Before you lie two chests, one holds a key which you may find useful in your journey ahead, the other you will find a potion of my own creation. It is deadly to those already injured, magnifying all of your hurts and pains. There are no riddles or hits, you will select a box if you select the poison you will be forced to take it. If it is the key then you are free to move on to the next room. If you refuse to take the potion all of the oxygen will leave this cavern and the next person to try this foolish task will be the one to find your body.”

The apparition disappeared shortly after, leaving Harry and Dumbledore alone. Dumbledore was the first to break the silence.

“Do you remember the mission that Voldemort had put Draco to?”

It was an odd question and very out of place, but Harry answered anyway, “Yes, he was meant to kill you.”

“Yes, but not that one, remember the other part to it?”

Harry had been the room when Draco had described all the of the horrors that he had been forced to face and what had been expected of him. Harry had done his best to listen and remember, but at the time had been so floored by the things that Draco had described, he could only remember the horrorstricken look on the boy’s face. “No I don’t.”

It seemed Dumbledore wasn’t sure if he was telling the truth and the older wizard took some time to simply observe his face before continuing. “There is an old chest at a store in Diagon Alley called Borgin and Burkes. It is said to have a pair which one may enter and reappear in the other chest. Draco was to find it’s pair in Hogwarts, repair it, and allow the Death Eaters to enter into the castle past all of our protections.”

“Oh,” Harry felt thoroughly chastised, but still did not understand the significance of the chest now. “Why are you telling me this now?”

“Because I suspect that these chests are made of the same material and imbued with the same spells.” Dumbledore spoke in the tone he often used when he wanted to sound wise and all knowing, there had been a time when that tone had worked on Harry, but even now he was sure that the old wizard truly believed the words he was speaking.

“So you think that it won’t matter which chest you choose, the first one will always be the one with the poison?” It seemed like a reasonable explanation.

“Yes.”

“Then what do we do?” Harry hardly thought there was any choice, they would have to find a way to undo the spells or trick the system.

“I will take the potion, naturally.”

Harry didn’t like the old man. He couldn’t find it in himself to respect him after everything that had happened. That being said, he certainly wasn’t okay with sending him to his death. “No.”

“Harry I am old, there is no way I am putting your life at risk when mine is already near over. I have made many mistakes in my life and allowing you to die over my ego is not one that I can make. I have lived too long making sacrifices for the greater good, now it’s time I make a sacrifice for the right reasons.”

There didn’t seem a good reason to argue his point and Harry couldn’t find it in himself to try. “Okay, if you are sure.”

Dumbledore didn’t respond and instead reached out to touch the nearest chest. It opened with a soft hiss and a click. Sure enough there was a single phial with a clear liquid nestled in the center of the chest. He took the phial with his bad hand and uncorked it before drinking it down. Harry watched him carefully it seemed the effects were already taking hold as Dumbledore fell to the ground, moaning in pain.

“Professor,” Harry reached out and was waved away.

“Go, you don’t need me for the rest of this.” The gasping breath was not encouraging.

“You knew that it would take two people to get through the tests, that’s why you’ve never come here before.” It made sense in an insane sort of way, something that Harry was sure the wizard was capable of.

“I suspected. I knew that if it came to it, you would be able to leave me behind to finish the mission.”

“But how could you have known that?”

“I told you, there are many mistakes in my past, but this was not one that I would ever make.”

Harry wondered if he truly meant that all of his actions this past few months had been to force a divide between them to bring them to this moment. He wasn’t sure if he could truly believe that, but he also didn’t have time to consider just how messed up his thought process was.

“Fine, will you be okay?”

“That doesn’t matter now, now go, you will be able to come back for me after.”

“Okay,” he didn’t like it, but they were running out of options and time and Harry knew that he had to do what was best for the greater good, no matter how much he heated to think like the old man. To destroy Voldemort he would have to find and destroy all of the horcruxes and it seemed very likely that there was one being guarded in the caves.

Harry looked away from Dumbledore to the closed chest. With a gentle tap of his wand, the chest opened and a small silver key sat waiting for him. The wall ahead opened much as the others had and revealed another hallway. “I’ll be right back, Sir.”

Harry didn’t stop to hear the response before moving into the cramped hall.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope to have the next chapter (and the end to this cave scene I promise) on or around **August 12th** so check back around then!


	26. Chapter 26

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Harry and Dumbledore continue their treacherous journey through Voldemort's curse invested cave in the hopes of recovering and destroying another horcrux.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am SO sorry for the delay. To say I have been busy is an understatement. Since my last post a lot has happened in my personal life! I have gotten engaged, planned 2 ceremonies, started to look for my first house, helped plan my best friend's wedding, and seen exponential growth in my self-run handcrafted jewelry business while seeing accomplishments in my actual full time job. I have been slowly writing this chapter in the small spare moments that I have had, and I just want to thank all of you for sticking through this with me!

Of all things that Harry expected to see in the next room of the cave, two snakes was the least of it, but he was sure he should have know. They were relatively small in size and looked to be siblings if their similar markings and obvious ease around each other were anything to go by. They were also magical animals, Harry could tell, and seeing as how they had managed to survive in the cavern with no obvious food or water source Harry was sure that them being there was just a purposeful as the rest of the many tests that he had been forced to endure.

As he had predicted the wall behind him closed as soon as he moved further into the room, cutting him off from the hall which lead back toward Dumbledore. It could have been his youth and overconfidence, but he felt no fear, being locked in the cavern alone. He knew snakes, could handle them, and was more than certain that this test would be easy. Voldemort would have built this test not expecting the person who would come to face these creatures to be able to speak to them. Harry had an advantage that he would be wise to use.

It seemed the snakes had finally realized that they were not alone when the rumble of the stone moving into place passed and they halted in their circuits to scrutinize the young wizard.

 _We are being visited by a wizard Jaculus._ The snake to the right hissed, bobbing it’s head toward Harry in mild interest.

 _This wizard is not Master, Vipera, he must be a meal sent from mother._ The second snake reasoned, clearly the more bold of the two as it began to move closer toward Harry.

 _It has been a long time since we have had a meal._ Vipera agreed, seemingly more interested in him now.

 _If it is food you seek I can bring you food._ Harry spoke, startling the two snakes from coming closer.

 _He speaks to us. He understands us. Maybe he has been sent by the Master to test us. We must not hurt him._ Vipera began to slide back, away from Harry and toward the back of the small room. Jaculus was far less intimidated and stood his ground.

_It matters not. Master said that any man or woman who we encounter is a foe. He will make a nice meal._

Well things were certainly not going as planned and Harry realized he would have to think fast if he wanted to get out of this alive and without killing the snakes unnecessarily. He doubted that would allow him to leave the cavern. It seemed that there wasn’t going to be any explanation for what he needed to do to pass this point of the cave. Voldemort would have certainly expected that anyone who had the skills to get this far would not need any instructions because they would not be able to kill both snakes. To test his theory, Harry took a step forward, not surprised when both of the snakes hissed.

 _Step back wizard._ Jaculus snapped forward before recoiling when Harry lifted his wand.

Out of the corner of his eye, Harry saw Vipera begin to move closer, silently moving around the perimeter of the room.

 _Why did your mother and Master leave you here? Did they not want you by their side?_ He knew agitating them could have serious and dangerous repercussions, but he needed an idea of how to make it past them to the next room.

 _I do not know. Is it possible that they did not want us?_ Vipera asked as she came to a full stop, keeping a small amount of room between them. Harry knew then that it would not be impossible to get at least the female snake on his side.

_Do not listen to the wizard, he is only stalling. He does not want to be our meal. Master has given us a great task to protect the treasure at all cost. We must not fail Master._

While the two continued to talk, Harry allowed his eyes to wander the cavern. There had to be a way through to the other side. If he could figure it out, it might prove to the snakes that he was trustworthy. With any luck he would be able to make it through and back before Dumbledore succumbed to the potion.

Harry trained his focus to opposite side of the cavern. The snakes were taking care to insure that they came between him and the rear wall. There seemed to be no obvious markings to indicate that is where the door was, but he was sure if he found a way to around to the other side he would be able to find the entrance. It seemed the snakes were still distracted and paying him no mind so he began to inch as close to them as he dared, watching for movement from them, but also placing subtle spells on his glasses, hoping that with a little modification he could magnify the image. If he could convince them that he knew how to make it to the next room he hoped he would gain their trust. Simply killing them would do nothing, there had to be a reason for two snakes in an empty chamber, every task until that point had been deliberate and well thought out, this one would be no exception.

With the help of his magnified specks, Harry was able to see a pattern in the jutting rocks of the far wall. There seemed to be a rough spiral that ended in a larger rock. The spiral itself looked like a track or path or sorts and where it ended to meet the large rock it seemed as if the track continued underneath the rock and whatever was mean to be on the track would be able to slide into the protruding grey mass. If Harry had to guess one of the snakes would need to slide up the track and into the hidden compartment, though he wasn’t sure what would need to be done next. It seemed likely that which every snake entered the compartment would not return. Most magic, especially one this complex, would require payment to power or trigger it and the blood, body, and life of a small snake might just be enough to power such a dark locking enchantment. Harry had no doubt that the male snake, Jaculus, knew that a life would need to be given to enter the next room. Vipera seemed young and easy to influence and Harry doubted the poor thing knew that they were merely keys and nothing more.

_Jaculus, your Master trusted you and only you with the key to the entrance of his treasure room, correct?_

_What our Master has told us is none of your concern, wizard._ This time the snake lunged for Harry and a quick shielding spell was all that prevented him from receiving a particularly nasty snake bite.

_I find it concerning that he would only trust one of you, the children of his favorite Nagini, with the key to the treasure room. If only one of you knows the way, then why is there a need for two of you?_

Harry sidestepped another attack from the snake, watching his sister closely as she seemed hesitant to react.

_Jaculus, why has Master told you how to enter the treasure room and not me?_

_Do not listen to the wizard. I know nothing more than you do sweet sister._

Harry knew that there was no way to see doubt in the face of a snake and yet he knew it was present in Vipera all the same. He felt a pang of guilt, surely proving to her that her own brother had always deceived her would do her lasting damage, but it was more important for him to gain access to the room just beyond and he could not trouble himself with the feelings of a snake.

_Jaculus is lying to you, Vipera, he does know how to get to the next room and there is a reason why you do not know. It takes the word of a wizard and the body of a snake. You see, there are clear indents in the rocks on the other side, the size of a small snake. I believe that if you were to climb up into is tracks then I could cast the spell to open the door, it takes magic and blood to open the door._

_What is he saying?_ Vipera asked, moving away from Harry and closer to her brother. _Tell me brother, tell me what he is saying is wrong_.

The fun thing about Parseltongue was that you couldn’t lie in it, not really away. It was a magical language, one that had a drawback, you could not overtly tell a lie. You could talk around the subject, but it wasn’t possible to lie. It was funny that the house of the snakes, known for their sly and devious ways was symbolized by an animal that would only outsmart with their wits alone. Maybe it was truly fitting.

 _The wizard is not wrong. It will take blood to open the door. Master left us for when he needed access. He did not tell you because he knew you were weak and would protest._ It was not difficult to hear the hatred in the snake’s tone, there was something strange about tonality in Parseltongue, it existed, but only if you were careful to listen for it.

_You would have made me go first, telling me that it was okay. You knew I would have believed you. You would have let me go to my death?_

The silence was telling and Harry watched as the two snakes danced around each other as if they were waiting for the other to strike first. Harry knew that he would have to make one of them crawl into the wall in order to gain entrance in to the next room and he sorely hoped that it would be Jaculus. He weighed his options as he watched them, not sure how he could force a snake into the lock mechanism.

 _You would have lead me to my death._ Vipera cried, lunging at her brother, forcing the other snake to jump back.

Harry saw the opening for what it was. When Vipera lunged again, Jaculus jumped back and Harry used his expansive magic to cast a wandless, wordless _imperio._ Before Vipera could react, Jaculus turned and slid up the trail until he was sitting in the perfect spot for Harry to open the door. With a silent flick of his wand the door began to unlock and a pained hiss filled the cavern.

The wall opened into a hallway just as every other had, but unlike the others, the wall behind him opened as well. Harry hoped that it meant that he had reached the final room as he had no reference for the passage of time since he had left Dumbledore, but he was sure it had been to long. Vipera, it seemed, was still in shock and she sat by the opening in the wall.

There was no time. Harry walked through the open doors and down the dimly lit hall briskly, knowing that the traumatized snake would have to wait. He was alone now; Dumbledore, though not his favorite person, was relying on him and Harry was not going to let him down. The final room was empty except for a single stone pedestal which held a nondescript bust. There was something gold on it, though it took a few steps for Harry to verify that it was a golden locket.

Knowing that Voldemort would stop at nothing to make sure his horcruxes were safe, Harry cautiously circled the pedestal checking for all traces of curses and jinxes. Satisfied that there was nothing of interest, Harry walked right up to the locket, waving his wand around the locket, surprised when there was no resistance. Carefully, Harry levitated the locked and waved his hand in the air to unlatch the locket. The folded parchment fell from the open locket onto the floor.

There was no dark magic emanating form the locket and Harry felt it was safe to pocket it. He was already certain what he would see on the note, but he delicately opened it anyway.

**_To the Dark Lord_ **

**_I know I will be dead long before you read this but I want you to know that it was I who discovered your secret. I have stolen the real Horcrux and intend to destroy it as soon as I can. I face death in the hope that when you meet your match you will be mortal once more._ **

**_RAB_ **

There was no time to consider the note. It was obvious that their mission had been pointless and the boy wished he had a moment to feel sorry for himself, but he knew better. With a sigh, Harry shoved the parchment into his pocket and he slipped the locket over his head and under his robes. There would be time later to wallow in self-pity.

Harry turned and rushed through the open hall to the snake room. Vipera was still waiting by the door, seemingly unsure of what to do next. Taking pity on the creature, Harry extended his arm, silently inviting the snake to join him. It only took a moment for her to make up her mind and soon Harry had a new bracelet to match his locket.

The hall to the potions cavern had remained open and the wizard made quick work of navigating the dimly lit path until he found Dumbledore leaning against one of the open chests just as he'd left him.

"It is done?" The old, pained voice evoked an empathy in Harry that he hadn't been sure he was still capable of toward the wizard. He could not tell him the truth, the man was dying, that was pain enough.

"Yes." If Dumbledore knew he was lying he didn't say. "We need to make it back to the mouth of the cave. I should be able to get us back on the grounds, if Hogwarts will let me apparate in.”

“She will if you alert Severus first, he should meet us at the tower.” Harry nodded, though he was sure the dying wizard did not see it. He sent a quick patronus to Severus and then a second to Draco. He had to hope that Draco would inform the rest of their friends, he could only imagine how worried they must be.

“Let’s go, sir.” Harry leaned down to make sure the wizard was still breathing. When he was sure that the man was still with him Harry levitated him with a flick of his wand and made for the exit of the cave.

The walk through the many caverns and halls was short, causing Harry a moment of pause to contemplate just how long they had spent in Voldemort’s cursed hideaway. Harry had been half expecting to see the sun rising as he neared the mouth, but was greeted by the same starry sky that they had left under. There was no time to waste and Harry ended the charm he ad placed on Dumbledore, making sure to support the man and keep a tight grip on him. He had to believe that Hogwarts would let them in, the other option was too devastating to consider. With a final breath, Harry closed his eyes and envisioned the Astronomy Tower, willing the enormous power of his magic to take hold and guide them safely to their destination.

If Harry was one to believe in miracles, he would have sworn one had taken place as he opened his eyes to see the familiar stone walls of Hogwarts. The joy was short-lived as the weight of Dumbledore's crippled body sagged fully into him and Harry was forced to gently lead the man down to the ground. There was a banging noise coming from bellow and Harry was soon confronted with a stricken Snape, the customary black robes billowing about him in a way so familiar it nearly lightened the boy's heart.

"What happened?" Snape demanded, his eyes jumping between the two in rapid succession.

"We went to the cave, there was a potion-" was all Harry managed to say before the potion's master produced a beazor from his pocket and knelt by Dumbledore's side.

"No, remember your role, my boy." The old wizard gasped, weakly batting at the rock. "You must end this, Severus."

"It's too soon, we're not ready yet," Harry and the core had already began to develop a plan for this moment, evacuation of the core being a key component, but it was still too soon. Without conscious thought, Harry felt himself draw his wand, not training it on either wizard, but instead clutching it to his chest, not sure what to do.

"That doesn't matter, it's too late to turn back now." Despite the obvious pain he was in, Dumbledore still drew his wand and trained it on Harry. "You must let these things run their course. Severus and I have known this would happen and you and your friends already have a plan in case of the worst. It is time for this long game to reach it's climax."

"As soon as this is done, you know I must inform Riddle, there is no way for me to keep the rest of them out of the castle then. We are not ready yet Albus, it is not the time." Severus added, looking just as conflicted as Harry, thought he kept is composure, not having yet reached for his own wand.

"There will never be a more perfect time, Severus. I am weak and I fear nothing could heal me now. Stick to the plan, end my suffering and then call Riddle. He will send death eaters to confirm before they try to hunt down Harry and the others. You must not let them find you." The last comment was directed to the boy himself.

Before Harry would respond, a noise from bellow alerted them that they would soon not be alone. Harry saw Draco's hair peak up from the ladder first, worried grey eyes followed after until his partner was fully on the landing. He must have seen Dumbledore's drawn wand because with a dark look and a flick of his wrist, the old wizard's wand flew through the air and the blond caught it with ease.

"Please, Severus," the whispered words might as well have been a deafening roar and Snape closed his eyes for a brief moment before nodding and squaring his shoulders and procuring his wand from the holster in his sleeve. When his eyes opened, there was a sureness in them that sent chills through Harry. He almost did not hear the quiet _Azada Kadavra_ but the green light that shot from his wand was not hard to mistake.

There was a scream and black and green eyes looked to focus on Draco for a moment before locking on each other again. "You need to take care of them, Potter, I can only buy you so much time."

"Understood," Harry turned his back on the lifeless body of the man who both saved and manipulated him, determined not to allow the sight of him to slow him down. "Draco, I know this wasn't the plan and I promise I will explain later, but right now we have to get to the dorm, tell me that the core is already there."

"They are," Draco gasped, still obviously in shock.

"Draco, son, do as Harry says." Hearing his godfather speak jolted the boy from his trance and he sprang toward the ladder without another complaint.

They covered the distance between the tower and their dorm in swift silence. Harry could tell that his lover was ready to burst with questions, but thankfully was able to stay silent. They would have time to talk later, but the halls of Hogwarts were no longer a safe place to have such discussions. Harry gave the password to Godric who sat at his post, worry in his eyes. Salazar was in the portrait above the fireplace waiting with the rest of the core.

"Salazar can you bring Godric in too? This is urgent and there is to be no one else entering our dorm until it is safe." Harry spoke first to the portrait before training his eyes on the silent room. "A lot has happened tonight, but first I must tell you that Hogwarts is no longer safe, we have to go."

"What do you mean?" Hermione asked and Harry noticed as all those within the core whom had a significant other in the room reached out to hold them close. Harry felt Draco's own hand slide into his, squeezing him as if to remind him that he was there to support Harry. It was much needed and Harry felt as some of the muscles in his body relaxed just slightly and suddenly it was easier to breath.

"There is too much to discuss right now, I promise I will explain everything later, but first we need to put our evacuation plan into motion. Dumbledore was severely hurt in our quest tonight and Severus had to keep his word." The hush in the room became impossibly quieter as everyone present knew what that meant.

"How much time do we have?" Ginny asked, ever the Gryffindor she looked friendly determined and Harry was incredibly grateful for her strength. They would all need it now.

"As much as Salazar and Godric can grant us."

"We can hold all wizards and witches out unless Professor Snape is forced to gain entry to keep his cover." Godric said and Salazar nodded gravely beside him. "We cannot deny access to a Professor, no matter the circumstances."

"That is understandable," Draco spoke for the first time since the tower. "Everyone, quickly gather everything you can. Hermione will tuck it all into her bag and then we leave the castle."

"How are we going to get out?" Dean asked and the others looked at each other with worried eyes.

"Hogwarts let me apparate in earlier tonight, I hope that even with Dumbledore's death the wards will remain adjusted and I can move freely in and out of the castle. It is not ideal, but it will do."

With those parting words the core disbanded and they began to gather their most precious items in an organized silence. Hermione took each item, handling them with care as she filled her expandable bag, saving her own packing for last until they were all standing in the common room again.

"This is it," Neville sighed and many vocalized their agreement.

"We'll be back one day, Nev." Luna reassured. "This is home for many of us, after all, and we will not abandon our home."

"We'll said," Harry did his best to smile at the blonde. "Come along now."

"Off to the next big adventure." And with Luna's parting words, Harry took his friends by groups of two out into the uncertain night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For those of you who feared that I abandoned this work, I promise you I have not! Due to the overwhelming amount of things on my plate I do not anticipate another update until mid-July. Thank you again for all of my loyal readers and to all of my new ones as well for sticking by this story. I promise I will not abandon it or you!


	27. Chapter 27

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I realize that sorry won't cut it, but I am very sorry that this took so long. To say I have been busy is an understatement, but the good news is that I have FINALLY have the rest of this story planned out which should cut back on the writers block and also allow me to finish it properly for all of you who have been so great to me by sticking it out!

Hermione was seated comfortably in her favorite chair in the Junior Order’s library. It was located in the perfect vantage point to see the door while still being next to large windows allowing natural light in for most of the day to shine on the large tomes that littered the table before her. Amongst the books, there were large stacks of parchment and bottles of ink strewn about with half written ideas on the next possible horcrux. The theories found on them were scrawled in many hands as everyone from the Junior Order had done their part to help, though they were no closer than they had been when they had first started their research nearly a month prior. For once, things were blessedly quiet, though Hermione knew it wound’t be like this for long. With another sigh, she turned her focus back to the parchment infant of her. They knew that Tom Riddle’s Diary had been one, that had been Pansy’s insight, which had surprised many, but had made sense. The ring was the second, that much was obvious, but then came the question of where the others could be.

Luna had theorized that Ravenclaw’s diadem could be one, it seemed fitting that Voldemort would use items from Hogwarts as that was the only true home he had ever known. The only issue was that the diadem was lost, according to Luna no one had seen it in centuries. From there it was speculation. They had no idea what the item from Hufflepuff could be, but it had been decided upon that there was no way that Riddle would have sought out one of Gryffindor’s treasures. The matter of the locket was a tough on. Draco had been the one to point out that R.A.B. was Regulus Black, Sirius’ younger bother, but they could not risk going back to the Order’s headquarters to search for the thing.

Hermione was pulled from her thoughts as the door opened and signaled the arrival of the others. She sighed, putting her quill down, she hadn’t made any headway and as much as she enjoyed the quiet, she knew that she was not going to get anywhere without help. Ron was the first one through the door and he immediately joined her, the two comfortably squished on the chair they often occupied. Draco had his housemates came in next, followed by Luna, and the rest of the Core. They settled themselves in their usual spots, before anyone spoke.

“I think I know a way to get information on the locket. The house elf that belongs to the Blacks, he might know what happened to the locket.” Draco offered his thoughts.

“We can’t trust Kreacher.” Harry responded and Hermione nodded to show her agreement.

“Of course not, but we can still use him.” Pansy spoke next. “I know this will sound horrible, but you never grew up with house elves. We did. We know how to talk to them, what to say to make them listen and not betray you. With Harry inheriting the House of Black, Kreacher is bond to him and he cannot disobey a direct order.”

“I don’t like this.” Hermione spoke up again.

“I know, Mione, but it sounds like this might be our only option,” Ron soothed as he tucked her hair behind her ear. “Plus Kreacher is horrible wretch so it’s not like we’re forcing a good elf to do something against their will.”

“Wretch or not, he’s still a being with feelings.” Hermione protested, though she knew that there wasn’t any hope. It was their best chance at finding the real locket and that was more important at this point. “That being said I understand that this is probably the only option. If we do this, I think that Pansy and Draco should be the only ones in the room with Harry because they are less likely to set him off. We know how he feels about us.”

“I want to prep you on what to say first,” Pansy nodded toward Harry. “It would be better if we are a united force when speaking to him.”

“Where should we do this? Allowing him into the House means that he will be able to find his way back and that is not something we can afford.” Dean brought up a good point and a few of the others murmured their own questions.

“There is that empty portion of the basement we can use.” Ginny offered. There was a room that was off the potions lab that was meant to be a storeroom for ingredients, but in their haste they hadn’t had the time to fill it with anything and so the shelves remained bare.

“We can put protective spells around the room so he cannot tell where he is, it won’t be perfect, but it could work.” Luna suggested.

“Hermione, could you and Blaise work on that for us?” Harry looked between the two, the strongest charms casters as both nodded. “Alright while that is being done, Draco, Pansy, and I will talk over the plan. We are going to need to find a place to store the horcrux while we find something we can use to destroy it. I think we should create another small room in the basement and make it heavily fortified. I don’t think the storeroom is a good idea because we will need to stock is soon.”

“We can work on creating another room while Hermione and Blaise do the charms on the store room so it will be ready for them when they’re done.” Ginny said and Neville and Ron nodded, volunteering to help.

“Alright and then everyone else can keep working on trying to figure out the rest of the horcruxes.” A collective groan went through the room and Harry chuckled. “I know, it’s not ideal, but there has to be something we’re missing.”

“Harry’s right, we should take a break for lunch and then regroup.” Luna suggested and the groups broke up from there, their tasks decided upon.

Draco, Harry, and Pansy moved from the larger library to the small study which connected to the room. Harry took a seat behind his desk while the others sat across from him. At first they were silent, the weight of the past week pressing heavily down on them.

“I know this is the best plan, but I really don’t want to bring Kreacher into our home.” Harry admitted. It wasn’t as if he didn’t trust the others, but admitting his worries seemed easier in front of such a small audience.

“I know, but this is the only way,” Draco said as he stretched out his arm to take Harry’s hand in his. “Like Pansy said, we know how to talk to house elves. They might not be able to disobey you, but ones as old and as angry as Kreacher will know that their are loopholes to the rules. He will know how to hint at the right things to the right people unless you tell him specifically not to.”

“As long as you tell him that he is never to mention, hint at, or suggest to anyone including all Death Eaters, Voldemort, or any pureblood who has questionable alliances that he spoke to you, he will not be able to lead anyone back to us. You will also need to tell him that he is never to return to this location even should you call upon him because if he does he will be forced to kill himself.” Pansy spoke in a mater-of-fact tone that would have caused Harry worry had he not known her so well. She spoke about the death of a house elf as if it meant nothing, but Harry knew that she felt remorse by the small look of discomfort in her eyes. She hid it well, like any good pureblood, Slytherin would, but she didn’t like the situation anymore than he did.

“That is very drastic. I can see why you saved that bit for when Hermione wasn’t in the room.” Harry sighed as he rubbed his hand over his face, his glasses hanging limply in his other hand. “Alright, so the plan is we call him to me, make him tell us everything we can about the locket, threaten him and then banish him, right?”

“Pretty much,” Draco nodded. “It’s not ideal, but the safety of the house and the Core is far greater.”

“Agreed. We just don’t tell Hermione about that last bit then, otherwise we might survive to the end of the war,” Harry chuckled and the Slytherins before him nodded, looking slightly pale.

They left the study to join the others in the library again, waiting for Hermione and Blaise to let them know that the room was ready. They dined on sandwiches that Ron had made and spoke in hushed tones about what Voldemort might have taken of Hufflepuff’s and where they might find it. They worked for what felt like hours with nothing to show for it, before a very tired Hermione and Blaise reentered the room.

“It’s ready, we’re taking a break before we work on the other room,” Hermione said.

“That’s fine, you deserve it and it’s likely the locket is long gone, if we’re lucky, Regulus was able to destroy it before he died.”

Harry left with Draco and Pansy on his heals. He wasn’t nervous, not exactly, but he felt almost hesitant as they took the stairs down to the basement. The walk through the barren potions room and into the store room was deathly quiet and the feeling of the strong magic at the door made Harry shiver. He knew the level of magic that the two had used explained why the pair had looked so tired when they were done. He made a mental note to tell them to take the rest of the day off. When the three stood in the center of the room with the door tightly shut, Harry looked to Pansy then Draco before taking a deep sigh.

“Kreacher.” His voice sounded harsh to his own ears as he felt the magic that joined him to the elf pull, allowing him through the many strong magical barriers that warred the house. He felt as the elf ripped a hole through it all before the magic mended itself, not allowing anything to follow him. When Harry opened his eyes he was looking that the old, decrepit house elf.

“Filthy halfbreed, where have you taken Kreacher?”

“That is not of your concern.” Draco drawled, falling back into his pureblood mask and Pansy did the same. Harry would have been more impressed if he hadn’t been watching the pure hatred in the elf’s eyes turn into reverence as his eyes fell on them.

“Master Malfoy, Mistress Parkinson.” He bowed so low that his long, floppy ears grazed the ground.

“We are not your Masters, you are never to disrespect your Master as you just have,” Pansy intoned, sounding every bit the aristocrat that Kreacher would have been accustomed to serving.

“I don’t care how you treat me, just tell me, have you seen this before?” Harry pulled the fake locket from his jean’s pocket and dangled it before the elf. His reaction was instant and visceral. He reared back so quickly from the object the he knocked into Draco.

“That is a fake, a fake of an evil object,” Kreacher hissed. “Master Regulus made Kreacher make it before he died. He made Kreacher promise to destroy it, but Kreacher COULDN’T.” He tried to find something to punish himself with.

“Stop that this instant.” Pansy commanded and Kreacher stopped instantly.

“Kreacher, where is the real one?” Harry did his best to keep the elf on track.

“That slippery, filthy man took it.”

“What man?” Draco barked and Kreacher’s sneer only darkened.

“Mundungus Fletcher,” he spat and Harry growled. He knew the others would not know the name, but he was not in the least bit surprised to here that the old thief stole from Sirius while he was forced to appear for Order meetings.

“Alright Kreacher, thank you for your answers. Now you are not allowed to tell anyone that you have spoken to the three of us. You are not allowed to suggest to anyone or hint to anyone that this conversation took place. If you do anything that should let anyone know that this meeting took place you will immediately need to warn me after which you will kill yourself. You cannot just pretend to warn me, either, you will need to make sure that I know of your treachery or you will inflict pain upon yourself, but not enough to end your sorry life before you warn me. Furthermore you will never step foot back into this location nor will you be able to tell anyone of it, hint at it or make anyone aware of it’s location or you will once again need to warn me before killing yourself. That is an order, are we clear.”

“Yes Master Potter,” Kreacher sneered, obviously agreeing to his terms under duress.

“Good. You are dismissed.” The sickening crack of apparition signaled that they were alone.

“Wow, Potter, I didn’t think you had that in you. That was some creative wording.” Pansy whistled, looking impressed and a bit scared.

“What do we do next?”

“I think we need to bring the twins in on this. They are on the outside and I trust them to get the job done.”

“Alright let’s tell the others and reach out to them.” Draco lead the way out of the room and back toward the main house.

“Mundungus is a thief and leech. He would have peddled the locket by now, so I’m sure we’re going to need to tracker down whomever he sold it to and then send a group out to confront them for it.”

“Why would someone like that be given access to the Order and to their headquarters?” Pansy asked.

“He knows a lot of people in the underground and would not have looked out of place in Knockturn Alley. I suppose they believed him to be a necessary evil, but the fact is that the is an idiot and a coward and he holds no true value to the Order. They let in men like him, but kept us out on the basis that we are children and too young to be exposed to the war.” Harry said, not able to keep the bitterness from his voice.

“That’s obscured.” Pansy laughed at how outrageous the whole thing sounded.

“That’s what we built the Junior Order for.” Harry said, ending the conversation with a quick look. They found the others and filled them in on their plan before sending a quick patronus to the twins.

* * *

“Oi, Mundungus, we’ve got a bone to pick with you!” George called as his twin kept close to his side. They were in the Leaky Cauldron on a slow Wednesday night and the bar was mostly empty. The fidgety man looked at them as if he wished to be anywhere but there in front of them and nearly made a dash for it.

“Now, now, is that a way to greet old friends?” Fred smirked, brandishing his wand to close the door and forced the wizard to turn to face them. “Why don’t we take this to the back, Tom has been kind enough to give us a quiet place to talk.”

“We mean you no harm, just come with us.” George took the man’s arm, smiling around the bar to anyone who dared stare at them. “Stop the sputtering now, Mundungus, these good people are going to think we’re being unpleasant to you.”

“I’m sorry about the gold, I didn’t know!”

“The leprechaun gold? No, we’re well past that.” Fred laughed, taking his other arm and leading him with his twin to the back room. They waved to Tom in unison and waltzed into the back room of the bar, kicking the door closed together before hauling the thief into the nearest chair.

“What is this about, boys?”

“We know you stole a peculiar object from Order Headquarters.” George started, sitting across from him.

“It was a gold locket, a real old one with a snake on the front, it was a pretty dark object from what we’ve been told.” Fred said as he stayed by Mundungus, his hand firmly planted on the man’s shoulder to keep him in place.

“I would never!”

“Cut the crap, Mundungus. Where is it?” George took his wand from its holster, spinning it through the fingers on his right hand. “Who did you sell it to?”

“I really don’t know what you’re talking about!”

“I doubt that.” Fred nearly sang as the tip of his wand pressed into his neck.

“Alright! Alright! I nicked the thing. It’s a dark, evil thing. I don’t know what you boys want with it, but it’s gone. I sold it!”

“Who did you sell it to?”

“Some old wizard, he was odd and fixated on the thing. It suited me just fine I just wanted to be rid of it. He paid a lot for it too, nearly—”

“We don’t care, we want a name.” Fred poked him harder and the slimy man shrunk away from him and his wand.

“Artikus, Artikus Burch.” He managed to splutter out and the twins shared a look. They had never heard the name before, but they knew Harry and rest would figure it out.

“Alright Mundungus, we’re going to have a drink at the bar and laugh this off and then you’re not going to talk about this ever again.”

“We have a pretty shiny galleon for you and everything, how does that sound?” George pulled the coin from his pocket and held it out. The wretch scrambled out to grab the coin as he examined it to make sure it was real.

“Do we have a deal?” Fred asked when it was obvious that the man was satisfied that it was in fact actual currency.

“We have a deal.”

“You two go on ahead.” George nodded to the door. He waited for them to leave before he cast a quick patrons. “Harry, he admitted to stealing the locket and he said he sold it to a wizard named Artikus Burch. I’ve never heard the name and neither has Fred, but I hope this help.” He let the patronus play the message back before sending it on his way.

* * *

Harry was sitting with Ginny, Blaise, and Ron pouring over more books in the library when the patronus of a fox appeared before them. George’s voice came from the small creature spoke. “Harry, he admitted to stealing the locket and he said he sold it to a wizard named Artikus Bruch.”

“Artikus Burch!” Ron jumped up startling them and cutting off the rest of the message. “He’s an old wizard, at least he has to be by now. I have nearly fifty of his chocolate frog cards. He would be over one hundred years old if he’s still alive.”

“What would he want with a horcrux?” Blaise asked.

“Well he is a magical historian. He was always interested in the Dark Arts, a bit of a loner too, but he was never known to have alined with any particular dark wizard. He would have just wanted it because it had once belong to Salazar or he could have known what it was and wanted to own something he never had the gall to create on his own.”

“Alright, since you seem to be the expert on him, where can we find him?” Harry laughed at his friend’s exuberance. It wasn’t often that he knew more than everyone else in the room and he seemed to really be enjoying it.

“Well something like that wouldn’t be on the cards, but I’m sure that shouldn’t be too hard to find. Hermione could probably locate it in her favorite book.”

“Why would his house be listed in the a History of Magic?”

“Why am I not surprised that her favorite book is a History of Magic?” Blaise chuckled and Ginny, smacked him on the arm.

“Be nice,” she admonished. “Anyway, something like that might be listed if he is known to be a dark wizard, that would be something that the ministry would think important knowledge for the wellbeing and protection of others.”

“That’s actually a little terrifying.” Harry muttered.

“That’s the wizarding world!” Ron said cheerily as only someone who lived in the world and saw nothing wrong with its oddities. “Well then I’m going to go track down my lovely girlfriend and see if we can’t find out where we’re going next.”

It didn’t take long for them to locate Hermione or for her to retrieve her copy of a History of Magic from her nightstand (something that Ron teased her for until she smacked him on the head with it) and for her to find the passage on Artikus Burch.

“The magical historian retired, virtually becoming a hermit, on the outskirts of an old, Irish village called Adare. It was once a wizarding village, but in recent years is has become more overgrown with muggles. It is believed that Burch has heavily wardered his home and it can only be found by powerful wizards seeking knowledge of dark magic.” Hermione read to the group as they were all gathered around her, back at the large table in the library.

“Well Harry’ll have no trouble finding it then.” Seamus spoke up. “Who should go with him, though?”

“Well if the passage is to be believed it should only be the strongest of us who could trick detective magic into thinking that they desired the knowledge of dark magic enough to get through the barriers.” Dean reasoned.

“I’d hate to sound stereotypical, but that would leave you three, then.” Neville motioned to the three Slytherins.

“You’re right, I doubt the rest of you would be able to trick his wards, no offense.” Pansy agreed, not looking bothered by being singled out. Draco and Blaise nodded beside her, also comfortable with being named as most likely to trick a dark magic detector.

“Alright then, it’s decided, we leave in the morning.” Harry said, closing the meeting and everyone seemed to relax and everyone helped to clean up from their day of research.

“Hey, good work today.” Harry whispered in Draco’s ear, before leaning in for a kiss. “I think you deserve a reward.”

“You did all the work,” Draco laughed, but allowed Harry to pull him away from the cleanup efforts. “But I won’t say no if you’re handing out treats.”

“Alright you two, get a room!” Ginny laughed as she began to shoo them from the room, the others ranging from catcalling to fake gagging.

“Lucky for us, I have a house.” Harry teased, before laying a particularly needy kiss on his eager boyfriend. “Goodnight everyone!” he called over his shoulder as Draco laughed, allowing him to pull him along.

The made haste to their room, laughter filling the halls and needy, breath stealing kisses stalling them, as they filled the house with joy and love, something that Harry only wished could be a more permanent thing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next chapter should be out within the next 7-10 days, but I will do my best not to delay!

**Author's Note:**

> I am going to try to post one chapter a week to give myself enough time to write more of the story, so keep checking back for more!


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